When You Trust
by artsfan
Summary: Changed title. Charmed XMen crossover with Logan and Rogue. The Sisters don't trust Chris, Logan doesn't trust the Sisters, and Chris trusts no one but himself. The trouble with trust is, once it's given, it can't be taken back. It can only be betrayed.
1. Demons? That's a Little Harsh

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. The fic takes place right after _Valhalley of the Dolls_ but before _Forget Me...Not _so Leo doesn't trust Chris, but the sisters do. Also, Logan and Rouge are coming from just after the first movie, so they're very close.**

_Demons? That's a Little Harsh..._

_Piper's POV_

Phoebe and I were sitting at the coffee table in the kitchen. Phoebe was wearing a cute white t-shirt, black jeans, and a multicolored scarf around her neck. _  
_

"So, do you like Jason or not?" I asked Phoebe in exasperation.

First she would say how he was arrogant, and rude, but the next moment, she was singing his praises to the sky.

"No! Yes!" Phoebe said, then she sighed and put her head in her hands. "I don't know anymore."

I leaned my head closer to Phoebe. My little sister had a strange love life.

"Look, I know it's hard because he's still in Hong Kong, but you can't tie yourself down for him."

I paused as Phoebe looked up at me, looking thoroughly depressed.

"If you _really_ love him, then wait, but if you're not sure...it's not fair for you to tie yourself down."

Phoebe nodded, looking marginally better. It was times like these that I loved; no demons to vanquish, Leo was out of my hair, and Chris was out of the house. It was rare that Phoebe, Paige and I actually had time to be sisters. Usually we just fought demons.

"Agh!"

I heard a scream come from the living room. Phoebe turned towards it.

"What was that?" she asked, piquing up at the idea of a vanquish.

I was not so eager for another glitch in the normal life I tried so hard to live.

"If it's a demon, I'm gonna make sure it knows to stay away from my house." I said angrily.

Did demons wait for the _worst_ moment to attack?

"Paige!" I called as Phoebe and I walked into the living room.

When I walked inside, I saw a girl and a man. The girl looked to be about sixteen or seventeen, and she had two white streaks at the front of her hair, the rest of it was brown. She wore a black long sleeve shirt, black gloves that went inside the shirt's sleeves, black pants, and black sneakers. She was looking anxiously at the man who was broad shouldered, muscled and had a slightly feral look about him. He was wearing a white shirt under a black leather jacket, blue jeans, and white sneakers. His eyes never stopped looking at me.

"Who the hell are you, and how did you get into my house?" I asked, worried.

How had they gotten in? Why had the girl screamed? Paige orbed into the room suddenly. Three metal claws emerged suddenly from between the fingers of the man. He pushed the girl behind him and backed up slowly. He turned to Paige, and he looked like he was thinking quickly.

"What type of demons are they?" I demanded of Paige, who had lately been studying the book.

"Demon?" said the man and girl at once, both sounded deeply insulted.

"That's a little harsh." said the girl.

"I've never seen that mutation before," said the man, "What is it?"

Mutation? MUTATION? Since when did demons call _us_ mutations?

"Ok, nap time." I said as I tried to freeze them.

The man and girl were still moving. My eyes widened in surprise as I turned to Phoebe.

"They don't freeze, why don't they freeze?"

The man looked confused, but seemed to think that we were his foe. Why didn't he freeze? Only Upper Level demons and witches didn't freeze. What were they?

_Rogue's POV_

Why were the women so surprised to see Logan's claws? They were mutants; one of them had asked why we didn't freeze. Did she have Bobby's power? Why wouldn't that affect us? The one with the long brown hair looked panicky. There were three women. One of them had long brown hair and a scar on one of her eyebrows. She was wearing a light blue shirt and blue jeans. Another woman had short brown hair, and was wearing a white t-shirt, multicolored scarf, and black jeans. The last woman had shoulder-length red hair, and was wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans. All of the women wore black, high-heeled boots, and had the look of fighters about them.

Logan and I had landed in what seemed to be a Victorian mansion. The floor was tiled, and there were several expensive-looking things in the living room.

"Aren't you mutants?" I asked hopefully.

If we weren't among friends, things could get dangerous. The red haired woman looked angry.

"We are not mutants!" she said angrily.

That was bad.

"Lamp!" she called and a table lamp disappeared in sparkling blue lights.

The lights flew towards Logan and hit him on the head. Logan flinched as though being punched, and I heard shattering on the floor. I looked down and saw the table lamp in shards on the floor.

"Get back, Rogue." said Logan, and he started to advance on the women.

"Blow him up Piper!" said the woman with the short brown hair.

The lady with the long brown hair, Piper, made to move her hands, but I pulled Logan back. A small explosion appeared in the space he had just been in.

"We don't mean any harm." I said.

I felt nervous. These women must be at _least_ level three mutants. Logan looked at me, then the women.

"Tell him to put his claws back, then." said the red haired one.

"We won't use our powers if you won't." I said.

Piper looked suspicious, but put down her hands. Logan drew his claws back into his skin, the skin healing itself instantly. I swallowed nervously.

I stepped out from behind Logan, ignoring the look of concern he sent at me.

"I'm Rogue, do you know where we are?" I asked.

Piper raised her eyebrows.

"San Francisco." she said.

"San Francisco?" repeated Logan in disbelief.

I was surprised. How had we gone from the school to San Francisco?

"What type of a name is Rogue?" asked the woman with the short brown hair. I ignored her.

"So, what are you, if you aren't mutants?" asked Logan.

"Witches." said Piper.

I raised my eyebrows. "Witches?" Logan and I said in unison.

"You mean, like fairies and trolls?" I asked, a smile threatening to burst onto my face.

"More like demons and demons." said the woman with the short brown hair. "I'm Phoebe," she gestured to the woman with the red hair, "This is my sister Paige," and to the woman with long brown hair, "And my other sister Piper."

"Logan." said Logan briskly.

I looked at the women. They didn't look like witches. They were all very pretty and in their late twenties. No green skin, no warts.

"Ok, ok, pow wow." said Piper, grabbing her sisters by their arms and taking them into another room.

I turned to Logan; he looked tense and wary.

"I don't trust them." he said while he felt inside his leather jacket for a cigar.

Because Logan was self-healing, he would never have to worry about lung cancer.

"Well, they seemed just as confused as we were. I don't think they know any more about us then we do about them," I said.

I hadn't gotten any negative vibes from the sisters, and they had seemed scared when they saw us. If they had been responsible for bringing us here, they wouldn't have been scared. Logan raised an eyebrow, took out a cigar and lit it. He was about to put it in his mouth when he sniffed the air.

"What is it?" I asked, turning around and looking around the fancy living room.

"Someone teleported in." said Logan, and he put out his cigar, and stuffed it inside his jacket.

_Paige's POV_

Piper dragged me into the hallway along with Phoebe. I was frustrated; first we had demons land in our house, and now my sister was dragging me like a sack of potatoes. I broke my arm out of Piper's grip.

"_What _is your problem?" I said, standing still and crossing my arms.

Piper looked at me like I was insane.

"Problem? You want to know what the problem is? Ok, there are _demons _in the house -"

"I'm not so sure they're demons." interrupted Phoebe thoughtfully. "If they were demons, wouldn't they have tried to kill us? I mean, Logan was obviously on the defensive."

Phoebe turned to me. "Right Paige?"

I put my hand on my head.

"I don't know anymore. Why can't all demons just be evil?"

"_If_ they are demons." said Phoebe.

Couldn't Phoebe just be quiet? I was getting a migraine.

"Chris would know." Said Piper. She turned to the ceiling. "Chris!" she yelled, "Chris I need to talk to you!"

Next to Piper a flurry of blue and white lights appeared.

"What, what?" asked Chris, apparently stressed.

"Nice to see you too." I said gruffly.

For a whitelighter, Chris was really annoying.

"Ok, weird people landed in our house. Demons, yay or nay?" said Piper.

Chris looked worried; he was always worried about demons. Hunt demons, vanquish demons, and then do it all over again! This guy needed a vacation.

"Well, what did they look like?" he asked.

"What did who look like?" said a voice to my side.

I turned and saw Logan in the kitchen doorway, with Rogue standing next to him. I felt a surge of annoyance towards Logan and Rogue.

"You know, when people have a private conversation, it's supposed to be oh, I don't know, _private!" _

Logan ignored me and moved closer to Chris, until he was about a foot away. Chris didn't move, but seemed ready to orb within a seconds notice. Somehow I got the feeling the Logan was more dangerous then any demon, including the Source, that we'd fought so far. Logan sniffed the air, like a dog. Chris got pissed.

"What are you doing?" he asked angrily.

"Hello, Chris! Are they demons?" asked Piper, annoyed that once question had taken so long to answer.

"I'm not sure." said Chris.

Logan took a step back from Chris, standing closer to Rogue. He turned his head to Rogue.

"They're not human." he said, and his hands clenched into fists, just like they had when he had taken out his claws before. When did demons get so _annoying?_

"Ok, we live, breathe, think, and kick some mighty fine demons ass," I said. "I'm pretty sure we're human." I put my hands on my hips; daring Logan to contradict me.

Logan's eyes flickered from me, to Piper and Phoebe, to Chris.

"Your blood doesn't smell right." he said. I could feel my eyes widen.

"Our blood? You can smell our _blood?" _

Logan didn't look remorseful in the slightest. Piper turned to Chris.

"Can demons smell blood?"

Chris looked very suspiciously at Logan and Rogue.

"Low-Level demons and Alchemists, but if they are demons, they look like Upper-Levels."

"We are not demons!" Rogue burst out, "We're mutants, from Xavier's School for Gifted Children."

"You don't trust us." said Logan, "But how do we know you're not working for Magneto?"

"Magneto?" asked Piper, Phoebe, Chris, and I in unison.

"What's a magneto?" Phoebe asked Rogue.

"A refrigerator magnet gone bad?" I quipped, but Logan glared at me.

_Logan's POV_

Who were they? Who the hell _were _they? Their blood. . . wasn't normal. It smells of plasma, and all sorts of other things that blood shouldn't have. Especially Paige and Chris; their blood was even stranger then Phoebe's and Piper's. Their blood was also all similar in base. They must have been a family.

"What's a magneto?" Phoebe asked Rogue.

"_He _is a level four mutant," I said, emphasizing that Magneto was a person. "He can control all metal, create magnetic fields, and fly. He's got a hell of a lot of power, and his hench-woman sent us here."

Piper turned to Chris.

"Is there a Magneto?" she asked, like _he _was a mutant expert.

Chris shook his head. "I've never heard of him." he turned to Rogue, "How _exactly _did you get here?" Rogue still looked a little nervous at being addressed by the self-proclaimed witches, but answered.

"We were at the school, Logan was about to go to Alkali Lake, when Mystique came."

"Mystique?" asked Piper.

"A shape-shifter." I said.

Rogue continued.

"She had changed herself to look like Kitty, and she was walking with one of Kitty's friends, Shannon. She can open portals to other places. So then the class bell rang and Mystique convinced Shannon to open a portal to take them to class, but Shannon still can't fully control her powers. Mystique turned back into herself while Shannon was still opening the portal. The portal got all staticky and Logan charged at Mystique. I ran after Logan, but she sidestepped us and we fell into the portal. Next thing we know, we're in your living room."

"If you're witches," I asked, "What are your powers?" I glared at Piper, Phoebe, Paige and Chris in turn. Would they tell the truth?

"Well, Chris and I can orb," said Paige,

"What's orbing?" I interrupted.

Paige closed her eyes and she disappeared in a flurry of white and blue lights. More lights, and then she reappeared where she had been standing before she orbed.

"That." she said sassily. "I also have telekinetic orbing, and the Glamor."

Ok, so she had telekinesis with lights, and she could temporarily change her appearance. She was strong. Piper talked next.

"I can selectively freeze time, and blow things up." she said.

"Show me." I said. I had to know the full extent of these people's powers.

Piper took out a set of key from her pocket and threw them into the air. She moved her hands in a jerking motion and the keys froze in midair. I squinted up at the keys; it was like invisible ice had kept them in the air. I'm glad I didn't freeze before.

"Paige can you get an apple?"

Piper asked. Paige rolled her eyes, but held out her hand.

"Apple!" she called.

A flurry of blue and white lights appeared in her hand. The lights vanished to reveal an apple in her hand.

She turned to Piper, "Ready?" she asked. Piper nodded.

Paige threw the apple into the air, and Piper made the same jerking motion with her hands from when she froze her keys. The apple exploded and bits of apple sauce rained on the ceiling and floor. Piper jerked her hands once more, and her keys fell into her hands. Piper was one to be watched; she could easily kill Rogue and I.

"And what about you?" I asked Phoebe. Was she just as powerful?

"I have empathetic powers, premonitions, and levitation." she said promptly.

So she was a psychic; that wasn't as bad as I'd feared. I would just have to keep my emotions under control around her.

"What about him?" I gestured to Chris, and he narrowed his eyes at me.

"He's our whitelighter," said Phoebe, then she noticed the confusion on my face,

"Like a guardian angel."

Tch, yeah right. He didn't look like an angel.

"All they can do is orb and Glamor, though some of the more experienced whitelighters can heal."

"What can you do?" said Chris, suspicion clear on his face.

I didn't like him, he seemed dangerous, like he was hiding secret talents.

"I can heal myself, and bring out my claws whenever I want." I said, demonstrating by bringing my claws out of my right hand, and then bringing them back in. I rubbed my knuckles gently, feeling my skin heal instantly.

It hurt to take out my claws; it hurt every time the metal ripped my skin. Rogue took a step forward, looking nervously at the witches and whitelighter.

"When people touch my skin, they get hurt." said Rogue.

She seemed ashamed of her power. She shouldn't be; she was a good person, regardless of her powers.

"How?" asked Paige.

"I'm not sure, they just do. But if I touch someone who has powers, I borrow the power."

"And if you touch a person who doesn't have any powers?" asked Piper.

Rogue lowered her head, embarrassed and afraid of her power.

"If I hold on too long, they die."

I raised my eyebrow at the expression on the witches faces. Piper and Phoebe looked sympathetic, Paige looked nervous, and Chris looked like he wanted to do nothing more then rip out Rogue's throat. He was staring at her with such apparent disgust, and such loathing. What the hell was his problem?

_Chris's POV_

Could they be the ones to turn Wyatt evil? Rogue certainly had the power, and if she could borrow Logan's healing power, they could both be dangerous. Was it their fault that Wyatt killed witches? Was it their doing that caused him to kill his own family? Did they turn him against all good? _Was it them? _I looked at Rogue, her strange hair and nervous demeanor; wondering if she was responsible.

"What the hell is your problem?" asked Logan harshly, snapping my out of my thoughts.

My emotions must have been showing on my face. I quickly changed my face to neutral, I couldn't allow any slip-ups on my part. Paige, Phoebe, and Mo- Piper, turned to me.

"Nothing." I said, careful to keep my face, eyes, and voice all neutral.

Logan narrowed his eyes at me distrustfully. Then he turned his attention back to Piper.

"Can one of you take Rogue and me back to the school?" Piper and Phoebe turned to Paige, who looked unsure.

"Well, I'm not sure." she said, I almost smiled.

I remembered all the times she had smiled like that in the Future. Looking awkward at first but always managing to come up with a Plan B. I needed to do that. As soon as I could get away, I would go down to the Underworld, and see what my latest contact knew about Rogue and Logan.

"If you came through a portal, you might have gone through more then just distance."

Piper nodded. "Paige is right. What's the name of your president?"

Trust mom - _Piper _to come up with the practical question.

"McKennon." said Logan.

"Robertson" said Piper.

She was Piper, she was _not_ my mom. I didn't even exist in this time. Not yet, anyway.

"So, what, you came from another world?" asked Paige.

"Seems like it." said Piper.

Even if they did come from another world, it didn't mean that they weren't the threat to Wyatt.

"Look, I have to go," I said, "Call if you need me."

I orbed out, into the Underworld to see my contact. She was a Seer, Keira, and maybe she could tell me something about Rouge and Logan.

I reformed in Keira's lair. It was a dark black cave with a pool of fog covered water. There were spears and axes on racks next to the pool.

"Keira!" I called, knowing that she would hear me.

"You called?" Said a voice behind me.

I turned around calmly, she must have Shimmered in. Keira wore a dark purple bikini-like top, a long dark purple skirt, and a dark purple cape over one arm. Did demons _only _like dark colors and dank caves? Or were they just unable to get their hands on paint?

"I need you to tell me about a girl, Rogue, and her companion, Logan. They might be from another world."

Keira raised an eyebrow and her eyes twinkled, looking forward to the challenge.

"That might be difficult." she said, walking over to the Pool.

I looked at her, sizing her up. I didn't know the seer well, and I wondered if her powers were strong enough to be of use. Keira saw me looking at her as she put her hand over the Pool.

"Watch the Pool." she said, "Unless you find my arm more interesting?"

A sarcastic demon; just what I _didn't_ need. I looked in the pool and saw.

_The girl Rogue, with all-brown hair, in a bedroom with a boy. They start to kiss; first slowly, nervously, then full of passion. Their eyes close in the joy of it._

_ The boy's eyes popped open and you can see the veins in his face and neck strain and become prominent under his skin. The boy falls back onto the bed; Rogue, realizing that she hurt the boy, gets up, screaming, and stands by her closet._

_ A man and a woman rush into the room. The woman tries to comfort Rogue, but the man screams at her. The woman tries to touch Rogue's shoulder to calm her down, but Rogue screams, crying hysterically, and the woman backs away. _

_The picture changes. _

_I see Rogue wearing a short sleeve black shirt, with long black gloves, along with black jeans, shoes, and a scarf. She was afraid of her power; she protected those around her. She was sitting by a counter in a dirty bar.  
The walls were covered with dirt and mold, and there were several dangerous looking men in the bar._

_ Logan was in a suede jacket smoking a cigar, sitting two seats away from her. Three men approach Logan from behind; one of them has the confident look of a man who knows things. He whispers in Logan's ear, but Logan doesn't respond. The man draws out a knife and prepares to stab Logan._

_ Rogue screams, and Logan turns to face the man with lighting reflexes. He knocks the knife out of the man's hand, and pushes him into a wooden pillar, with his fist near his throat. Two of Logan's claws are out, one on either side of the man's neck._

_ Logan's middle claw slowly extends until it lightly touches the man's throat. A rifle barrel touches the side of Logan's head. The gun is held by the barman, who says something to Logan. _

_Logan looks strained, and suddenly the claws come out of his other hand, slicing the rifle in half. The barman backs away while Logan keeps his claws extended threateningly. He stares at the barman, and the man he has pinned for a moment. He draws his claws back in and walks out of the bar. _

_Rogue follows him...  
_  
The pool went black, and a gray fog rolled over the surface. I turned to Keira angrily; wasn't there anything of use she could show me?

"Is that it?" I asked her.

Keira pulled her arm away from the pool and walked unconcernedly to a shelf filled with potion vials.

"You're lucky you were able to see that much." she said, turning back to me, "Premonition is always tricky; even more so when other worlds are involved."

I walked closer to Keira, trying to suppress my frustration. Keira was one of the most powerful Seers of the Underworld.

"Is there any way I can see more?" I asked her.

I had to know if Rogue was the threat to Wyatt. After seeing how she found out about her powers, it didn't seem likely, but I had to make sure.

"You know, you could always cast a truth spell." said Keira smugly, knowing why I couldn't.

"Then the sisters would know that I was hiding something." I said carefully.

I had to make sure that Keira didn't know too much. She was good – for a demon, but if she had anything on me, anything that she didn't already have, I would be seriously screwed. So far all she knew was that I was 'betraying' the sisters, and had something to hide. I wanted things to stay that way.

"Well, then maybe this will help." said Keira, walking over to me, and holding out two potions.

"What is it?" I asked. Keira smiled, and her eyes twinkled.

"It lets you ask them anything you want, and they'll forget afterwards. One question per vial."

I took the vials, and orbed out. If she thought I was rude, she should be glad she was still alive to think that way. Now, I would find out who these people really were.

**Ok, people; I hope you like the first chappie. I won't be able to update more then once a week**, **(I'm writting a fic with Gaara's Sweetheart. You should check out her profile.) But I will try to make the chappies long and juicy. Don't forget to review.**

** Also, a big thank you to Emanon and Dr. Shubert for their _constructive criticism. _I have edited the story, and hope you find it better this time. Thank you.**


	2. Chris vs Logan

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. If I did, I'd be stinkin' rich! I'm sorry it took so long to update; but I had flu, and then my teachers gave me major homework (a mix between the stuff I missed and the regular truckload). I will try to be more loyal in the future. Enjoy!  
**

_Chris vs. Logan_

_Chris's POV_

Chris orbed back to the manor, reforming in the attic. Chris looked around; he was alone. He held one of the vials that Keira had given him in his hand; now all he had to do was get Logan and Rogue on their own. But who should he start with? Rogue, he decided. She had the more lethal power. Chris walked out of the attic and down the steps, almost bumping into Phoebe.

"So did you do what you wanted?" asked Phoebe.

Chris smiled inwardly; if Phoebe had known what he was about to do, and just had done. . .

"Yeah." he said, "Piece of cake."

Phoebe smiled, then her face became more serious. "There aren't enough rooms in the manor for Logan and Rogue, so they're gonna be staying at P3 with you. Logan will be staying in your room, and Rogue will sleep in Piper's office for now."

Chris felt a surge of anger and fear. How could _they_ be staying with him, and one of them in the same room as him? How was he supposed to keep his secrets now? What if they tried to kill him? Did the sisters trust Logan and Rogue that much?

Chris kept himself neutral as he responded, "Sure. Ok."

Phoebe nodded, satisfied, and walked away, towards the kitchen.

"Are they in P3 now?" asked Chris, wondering if he could use the situation to get Rogue alone.

"Yeah," said Phoebe, "Paige orbed them there." Chris nodded, and orbed away to P3.

He reformed in his room, a remodified version of an office that Piper had previously used for records. Rogue was in his room, looking around at the posters on the wall.

"What are you doing here?" snapped Chris, his eyes on the open door, wondering where Logan was.

"I just wanted to see your room," said Rogue apologetically.

"Where's Logan?" asked Chris.

"He went to get a drink." said Rogue, "He should be back soon."

Chris nodded. Logan wouldn't be back for at least five minutes, and that was plenty of enough time to use his potion. Chris went to the door and closed it. Chris turned to Rogue, his back to the door, and threw one of his potions down at Rogue's feet. The phial shattered, and a thin, blue smoke rose into her nostrils. Rogue's skin glowed blue for a second, and then she looked at Chris blankly. The potion was _good, _thought Chris with approval.

"Do you or Logan turn Wyatt Matthew Halliwell evil in the Future?" asked Chris, looking intently at Rogue. Rogue looked blankly at Chris.

"No." she said, and Chris sighed in relief, rubbing his forehead.

At least he didn't have to worry about that anymore. Wyatt was safe from them, so now Chris would just have to worry about keeping his cover. Rogue's skin glowed blue once more, and then faded back to it's original color. She shook her head slightly, and looked at Chris, confused.

"What the hell did you do to her?" snarled a harsh voice behind him. Chris turned and saw Logan standing in the doorway. He hadn't even heard him come in. How much had he seen? How much would he tell?

_Logan's POV_

What had he done? What had the bastard done to Rogue? She looked confused, and I'd seen her skin glow blue.

"Answer me!" I said. If he'd hurt her . . .

"Nothing!" said Chris, but his eyes told the true story. Besides, I'd seen her glow, and Rogue didn't glow.

I stepped closer to Chris, and Rogue seemed to realize what was going on.

"Liar." I growled.

"What's happened?" asked Rogue.

"What did he do to you?" I asked Rogue, but she looked blank.

"What do you mean?" she asked, looking back from me to Chris and back to me again.

Chris gestured to Rogue. "See? I didn't do anything." His voice had a slightly false quality to it, and I could tell that he was lying.

Logan put on a burst of speed and ran towards Chris. Chris was taken by surprise and didn't move in time, as Logan punched him across the face. Chris was sent flying by Logan's mutant strength, and crashed into his desk, before falling onto the floor. Chris looked up at Logan, fear visible in his face and eyes, as Logan rushed towards him. Chris closed his eyes and started to orb, but Logan reached him and grabbed his orbs, flinging them, and Chris, across the room so that he crashed into a wall and reformed there.

"Logan, what are you doing? He didn't do anything wrong!" screamed Rogue.

Logan ignored Rogue. Obviously, Chris had brainwashed her, or erased her memory. Chris started to get up, but he wasn't quick enough to compare to Logan's better-then-average speed. Logan rushed at him again, pushing Chris hard against the wall, pinning him there with one hand, and putting his other fist inches away from Chris's throat.

The claws on the outside of Logan's fists came out, trapping Chris's neck between them. Logan's third and middle claw came out slowly lightly touching Chris's Adams Apple. Chris swallowed nervously, and Logan felt the movement against his claw. Logan felt satisfaction that Chris was afraid; that meant he would talk. He would find out the truth.

_Chris's POV_

Chris stared up at Logan's pitiless, merciless eyes, and he knew that he was trapped. If he tried to orb, Logan could easily grab his orbs, forcing Chris to reform, and stab him. He couldn't move either; Logan had him pinned against the wall, with one of his knife-like claws touching his throat and two less then a centimeter away. If Chris moved at all, Logan could slit his throat in less then a second, and Chris would die, not being a full whitelighter. Chris felt hate rise up in his throat, and his body tensed up in anger, fear and self-disgust. How could he have been incapacitated so easily, and by Logan, nonetheless?

"What did you do to Rogue, you bastard?" demanded Logan.

"Nothing." said Chris, biting down on his voice to keep the hate from it.

Logan's middle claw extended farther, pressing hard into the hollow of Chris's neck. The threat was clear; talk or die. But Chris was master at talking with empty words, though not necessarily lying.

"I didn't hurt her." he said, and as he talked, the movement of his Adams Apple against Logan's middle claw cut his skin, and caused a thin line of blood to run down his throat.

Chris saw Rogue run to Logan out of the corner of his eye. "Logan, let go of him." she said.

Logan didn't move, his light eyes looking darkly into Chris's. Chris stared right back into those eyes, his defiance strong and unstoppable as ever. Rogue walked over to Logan and grabbed the arm that was at Chris's throat with her gloved hand.

"Logan, let him go." she said, and there was a strength in her voice that Chris hadn't heard before.

Logan glanced once at Rogue, and once more at Chris. He sheathed his claws and moved his fist away from Chris's throat. Chris closed his eyes and exhaled a quick sigh of relief before opening his eyes. Logan walked quickly out of Chris's room tension lining his body, but Rogue stayed behind. Chris rubbed his throat and looked at his hand. There wasn't to much blood on it; Chris wouldn't even bother to ask Leo to Heal it. He didn't need Leo's help. Leo had other things to worry about, Chris was sure.

"Are you all right?" asked Rogue, moving closer to see the cut on Chris's throat.

"I'm fine." said Chris.** F**ucked up, **I**nsecure, **N**eurotic, **E**motional. Yup, he was just **FINE**.

"I'll talk to him," said Rogue, as she too walked out of Chris's room.

Chris looked despairingly around the room. Another mess to clean, another issue to deal with. And Logan would most likely go to Piper with the news that Chris had done something to Rogue. Now Chris would have to watch his steps extra carefully. Great, just great. It wasn't bad enough that he had to keep secrets from his family, those he loved, but now they would trust him even less then they already did. If they trusted him at all, that is.

Chris debated with himself whether to start cleaning his room, or go back to the manor to confront Logan. He decided to stay; the sisters and Logan would come to him soon enough, and if he went to them, it would only make them more likely to believe Logan. With a sigh, Chris rubbed his neck once more, and started to clean up the room.

**I know this chapter was shorter then the last one, but (as I said above) I had flu, and I wanted to give you guys _something_ to read. I will try to make the next one longer. Also, I need a favor from everyone. I'm co-writing a story with Gaara's Sweetheart called _Resistance isn't futile_. We've only gotten one review so far, so please R&R the story.**

** Here's the plot (WARNING Harry potter DH spoilers): You know that while Harry was hunting Horcruxes hell was moving in at Hogwarts. In the fic, we write what happened at Hogwarts, and what all the students had to go through. **

** I know it's rated K for now, that was an accident. The rating will be switched to T, and the story will be very angsty, and realistic, and true to Rowling. Give it a shot.**

** And for both of these stories, DON'T FORGET TO R&R!!!!  
**


	3. Chris's HalfTruths

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. By the way, I'm sorry if I caused any confusion when I switched from first to third person. I will now be staying with first person. On with the fic!! Sorry the chapter isn't so long, but school is hard.**

_Chris's Half-Truths_**  
**

_Piper's POV_

Logan had charged into the manner, interrupting yet _another_ conversation I was trying to have with Phoebe. He stopped in front of me, and I looked up at him, annoyed. Couldn't I just have _one_ minute with my sister?

"What do you want?" I asked, slowly noticing that Logan's body was tense and that he was sweating slightly, "Did something happen?"

Logan nodded, and sat down angrily on the chair across from Phoebe and I.

"Your whitelighter did something to Rogue." he said. I felt my eyes widen in surprise.

"Chris?" asked Phoebe

"Yeah," said Logan, "He said something, and she glowed blue."

It seemed like Logan was worried over nothing. "Is that it?" I asked, and Logan looked at me severely. "I'm just saying, what if she wanted to see magic? Just because Chris cast a color-changing spell -"

"Is there a color-changing spell in the Book?" Interrupted Phoebe curiously.

I was about to roll my eyes and say yes, when I felt a twinge of doubt. Was there a spell like that in the Book? There were spells for almost anything, but. . . now that I thought about it, I couldn't say for sure that there _was_ a color-changing spell.

"I don't know." I said.

"And when I confronted him about it, he said he hadn't done anything. And Rogue didn't seem to remember him doing anything." said Logan angrily, "Does your Book have a truth spell, or something like it?"

Yes, the Book had a truth spell, but we'd only used them to find out of Jack and Dan had been warlocks, and to see if Nate would except Paige as a witch. You just didn't cast a truth spell unless it was serious. I looked at Phoebe, who looked back at me, considering. I could see the unknown question on her face, should we use the truth spell?

I turned back to Logan, deciding to be honest with him. It's not like he could cast the spell if we didn't, anyway. "Yes Logan, the Book has a truth spell. But we only use it when there's no other choice. I don't think he cast a spell on her."

"I'm telling you, the bastard jinxed Rogue!" snapped Logan, jumping to his feet. "You have the spell that could force him to be honest, and you're just going to let him get away with it!?"

"Logan -" I began, but Logan walked out of the room before I could finish.

I turned to Phoebe, my annoyance at Logan rising rapidly. "Does he remember who's house this is?" I asked angrily.

"Oh honey," said Phoebe, and she pulled me into a hug. I felt marginally better in my sister's arms. "He just wants to protect his friend." I pulled out of the hug.

"I know that, but he's acting a little psycho about it. I mean, we don't even know if anything happened." I said.

Phoebe looked at me, considering. "He did seem really worried, though. And he doesn't seem the type to panic. Maybe we should check it out, you know, just in case." said Phoebe, "I mean, this is_Chris_ we're talking about. You know how he is."

I knew how Chris was. He was neurotic, manipulative, and not all too trustworthy. Leo was convinced that Chris had trapped him in Valhalla, and he had a convincing argument.

"Ok," I told Phoebe, "We'll go to Chris and get his side of the story. If it seems like he's lying, we'll make the potion."

Phoebe nodded. "Maybe we should make the potion first?" she asked.

"Not until we're sure." I said, "Then we make it."

Phoebe nodded. "Orb or drive?"

I thought about it. "Drive." I said. Chris might feel threatened if we orbed. We needed him to be calm so he could tell us his side of the story.

Phoebe and I walked towards the door, and headed towards my car. Hopefully, we could get some answers.

_Chris's POV_

I put the last book in its shelf and looked around, surveying my room. It was clean again after the fight Logan and I'd had. I rubbed my throat again, lightly touching the newly formed scab on my throat. I moved to my bed, sat down on it, and sighed. I rubbed my eyes wearily. What was I supposed to do? When I'd come from the Future, the plan had been simpler. Make myself the Charmed Ones whitelighter, find out who turned Wyatt, kill them, and then cover my tracks. How was I supposed to do that with two "mutants" running around, especially one who had come very close to killing me.

Come to think of it, Leo had almost killed me too, in Valhalla. But Leo was a pacifist. Though he came close, he wouldn't _actually_ kill me. Leo wanted to know my M.O, and to find that out, he needed me alive. Besides, Leo never killed anyone on his own, not in this Past, or in the Future... If he _really_ wanted me dead, he would get the Charmed Ones to do it. Wouldn't that be ironic, being killed by my own family? I chuckled darkly to myself. It would probably never come to any of that, but I had to be careful. Just in case.

I heard a knock at the door of my room, and I looked up. Piper, and Phoebe were at my door. "Can we come in?" asked Piper politely, but with an underlying tension in her voice.

"Sure." I said.

Why not? I'd cleaned up my room, and they probably wanted to know what happened. I should play ignorant. Then I could find out what Logan had told them. Piper and Phoebe entered my room, standing close to my bed. I got up.

"So what's up?" I asked.

Piper looked like she was trying to decide what to say. "Logan says you cast a spell on Rogue." she said, looking up at me. "Did you?"

I decided tell a half-truth. Those usually worked best. "I did," Phoebe and Piper's eyes widened. "But it wasn't what you think. I cast a spell on her to see if she was evil. If she was evil she would have glown red, if she was good she would have glown blue. Part of the spell was that she wouldn't remember it happening, just in case she _was_ evil."

I sighed softly. It was a half-truth, but it was better then lying outright. Sometimes it was disturbing to see how smoothly the lies came out of my mouth. Rogue had proved that she wouldn't go after Wyatt.

"Oh," Piper said, "Because he thought that you hurt her."

"No," I said, I'd never hurt someone who wasn't in my way, or out to hurt me. That wasn't the way I worked. And if someone got in my way, they deserved whatever they got. Rogue didn't fit into either of those categories.

Piper looked at Phoebe, who nodded. "I think he's telling the truth." she said, looking up at me.

So they thought I might have lied to them? What is anyone supposed to say to that, especially when it might be true? I didn't say anything, and Piper nodded back at Phoebe.

"Guess he is," she said.

I got that they didn't trust me, really I did, but why couldn't they at least talk like I was in the room?

"You doubted me?" I asked sarcastically, and Phoebe and Piper smiled slightly.

"See you later, Chris," said Phoebe as she and Piper started to walk out of my room, but then Phoebe turned back to me, and noticed the scab on my throat. She walked back to me, Piper behind her. "Chris, what happened?" she asked, lightly touching the sealed wound.

I pushed her hand away quickly. "Nothing." I said. Piper looked at me, with the look she always used to get me to tell her things. I sighed in defeat. "It was Logan."

"Logan?" asked Phoebe, looking surprised.

"Why would he do that?" said Piper, looking back at Phoebe.

"He thought I put a spell on Rogue." I said, and Phoebe and Piper looked at each other.

"All he said was that he confronted him..."said Phoebe worriedly looking up at me again.

"Well, he is a bit of a wild card." said Piper. While it was good that they cared for me, it was bad that they would be directing their attention towards me. I needed their focus turned away from me. "Honestly, it's fine." I said. Phoebe gave me a disbelieving look. "Really, it's just a scratch."

"Well, even if it is, he shouldn't have lost control." said Piper.

"Maybe we should talk to him." said Phoebe.

This was good; if they were focused on Logan, they wouldn't pay nearly as much attention to me and my plans.

"That's a good idea," I said, "We don't want him to lose control around everyone else."

Phoebe and Piper nodded, before they finally left my room, closing the door softly behind them.

I took out a map and an amethist scrying crystal. I would scry to see if there were any prominent threats right now against Wyatt. The crystal spun in a clockwise circle around the map for a few minutes. I felt tug, and let the crystal fall on ...the Manor? My eyes widened. It couldn't be Logan or rogue or the crystal would have landed on them before. A demon was at the Manor. I stood up quickly, and orbed to the Manor...

**Again, I'm sorry about the shortness of the chappie, but I barely have enough time to get a full night's sleep, let alone write a long chapter. Please review!!! Reviews help me write better, so REVIEW!!!!**


	4. The Descision, and the Connection

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. . . . I wish I did, but I don't, so it really sucks for me. **

_The Decision, and the Connection_

_Logan's POV_

I walked around the block three times, calming myself down. They should have used that truth-spell thing on the whitelighter. You could smell the manipulation leaking out of him. So, why did they trust him so much? Or was it that they trusted him more then me. I snorted, it didn't matter. What mattered was that I protected Rogue from him, until we could get back to our world. I looked around at the streets. It was incredible how I was in another world, but it was so much like my own.

As I neared the Manor, ready to go inside this time, I caught a smell on the wind. I sniffed the air; charcoal, ash, sweat. I listened, and heard grunts and breaking glass. Rogue was in danger! I ran towards the Manor, unsheathing my claws the moment I got inside. Chris orbed in next to me, and I pushed him away from me, into the wall.

"Move it, bub!" I yelled as I ran into the living room, adrenaline pumping.

I heard a small crash behind me and allowed myself a small grin. Stupid whitelighter. When I entered th living room, I saw four men and two women. All were dressed in black Gothic colors, and had fireballs coming out of their hands. Pyrokenises. I saw Rogue run into the room from the other side, and heard the running footsteps of Chris behind me. Paige ran into the room from the side, a dagger in her hand.

"Where're Piper and Phoebe?" she yelled as she threw the dagger into the heart of one of the men, who promptly burst into flames.

I ignored the burst of fire and ran towards another of the men, ramming my claws deep into his chest. His skin turned red as he screamed, his face a mask of anguish, as he too burst into flames, burning my knuckles. I flinched slightly as my knuckles healed themselves of the burns. I turned and saw Rogue, gloves off, grasping the face and neck of another man. He fainted suddenly, eyes rolling back into his head. Rogue let go of him.

I felt a rush of air to my left. I turned, and saw a fireball coming towards me. I jumped four feet into the air, and felt the fireball go under my feet. The man who threw the fireball burst into flames, as Paige threw a potion vial at it filled with a blue liquid. I landed and rolled away, noticing that there were still the two women and the unconscious man on the floor.

"Logan, look out!" yelled Chris, as he crashed into me, pushing both of us to the floor, as a fireball flew over the space where my head had been.

I'd been too focused on one thing, I hadn't noticed the fireball. Damn it. And damn the whitelighter for saving me. I pushed him off me, and stood up. Chis stood up as well and he waved his arm, causing one of the women to crash into the other. Both of the women had their fireballs out, and when they crashed, their fireballs went into the other's stomachs, blowing both of them up. I looked around the room; only the unconscious man was left on the floor.

Paige and Rogue walked over to Chris and I. Rogue had her gloves back on.

"You okay?" I asked her, and she nodded, though her face was slightly paler then usual.

"I'm fine."

I smiled at her. "You did good." Rogue smiled shyly.

"Is everyone alright?" asked Paige, looking from Rogue, to me, to Chris.

"Yeah." I said. Rogue and Chris both nodded.

"So, they were demons?" I asked, calmer now that the battle was over, and I'd gotten some stress of my shoulders. I cracked my neck, relieving it of the leftover tension.

Paige grimaced. "Please don't do that," I gave her a nod, "And yes those were demons."

"There's still one left," said Chris, gesturing to the unconscious man – demon – on the floor, "Maybe we can get him to tell us why they attacked and who they were."

Paige nodded, "Yeah, when they attack in groups of more then two, it's usually a Clan leader or Upper-Level demon who's after us." she told Rogue and I. She turned to Chris. "I'm gonna call Phoebe and Piper to see where they are, you go and get the crystals."

"Sure," said Chris, who gave me a look that I couldn't quite decipher before orbing away. Paige walked to the kitchen and started dialing a number on the phone.

Rogue and I were left in the living room. I walked closer to her. "You sure you're okay?" I asked, grasping her gloved hands. Rogue smiled.

"I can take care of myself Logan. I fell a lot more confident in my powers. And, at least in this world, I can use them to fight demons, right?" she said.

"Yeah," I said. "For an another world, it's not so bad, is it." I smiled at her.

"No, it's not." she said, and she smiled too.

I looked at the demon lying on the floor. "Why don't we move him to a clearer area?" I asked, and Rogue and I walked over to the demon. I grabbed his arms and she grabbed his legs.

"On three." said Rogue.

"Three." I said, and we dragged to demon to a clear spot on the tiled living room floor. Chris orbed down holding a box of crystals. He opened the box, and arranged the crystals around the demon in the shape of a five-pointed star, and put the box on the table.

I felt awkward. I loathed Chris, for doing whatever he did to Rogue, and just having this air of mistrust about him, and yet ... he saved me from a fireball. I mean, I wouldn't have died, I _would_ have healed, but ... If that fireball had taken my head off, could I have healed from that? I felt like I needed to thank him, but I didn't want to. He was such a dick.

"Hey," I said to Chris. Chris stood up and looked at me. "Thanks,"

Chris smiled, "No problem." he said. He was so hard to hate, damn it!

Paige came out of the kitchen. "Piper and Phoebe are in traffic, they'll be home as soon as they can."

"Why don't you just orb them here?" I asked.

"We can't just do that," Chris explained. "I'm not sure how it is in your world, but we have to keep our powers a secret here. We can _not_ risk exposure."

I thought about Magneto, and the government wanting to identify mutants, and I realized the wisdom in keeping powers a secret. "I guess you're right." I said to Chris.

"So is the demon awake yet?" asked Paige

"Not yet." said Rogue.

"Well, let's see if we can speed that along." said Paige, and she took a remaining crystal out of the box and walked over the the unconscious demon. She pushed the crystal in between two others, and a spark traveled from crystal to crystal, almost creating a force-field. The sparks from the crystals went through the demon and he woke up with a start, screaming.

I looked at Rogue; she looked pale and horrified. I looked at Paige and Chris, but they seemed normal. Did they torture demons much, that they were unfazed by his screams? If they had thought Rogue and I were demons, would she have done the same to us? Paige took the crystal out of the circle, but the force-field still remained, almost like a cage.

The demon panted, and he stared up at Rogue, Paige, Chris and I, his eyes darting from face to face, before turning his face coolly indifferent. It was a facade; he was terrified, and probably expected to die. I felt a small swell of pity for the guy.

"Who sent you?" demanded Paige.

The demon pressed his lips closed tightly, and closed his eyes hard. Paige put the crystal back into the circle and the sparks went through the demon. He screamed again, his coarse yells echoing throughout the manor.

"Stop it!" yelled Rogue, as she grabbed Paige's arm and pulled it, and the crystal, away from the circle. "Why are you doing this to him?"

"Rogue, he tried to kill us!" Paige said angrily.

"But that doesn't give you the right to torture him!" screamed Rogue, "I can understand that you have to make sure he doesn't hurt anyone else, but you can't just do this to him!"

"He's a _demon_!" yelled Paige.

"And I'm a _mutant_!" screamed Rogue, "And we all have powers, but not all demons are bad!"

"Why, do you know any?" yelled Paige.

"Lay off, Paige." I said loudly.

"This is the way my world works! Here, demons kill, and they kill, and they never stop killing until _they're_ killed," screamed Paige, losing her temper completely, "They don't talk unless they're tortured, because otherwise they go back to their little demon friends, and they gang up on us and try to kill _us_!"

"Leave her alone, Paige!" I yelled, focusing to keep my claws inside my hands. Paige looked at me, Rogue, and back at me again.

"Your Book has a truth spell doesn't it?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"Yes." said Paige briskly, turning to glare angrily at me.

"Then use it on the demon." I said, glancing at Rogue. Her eyes were full of tears, she was shaking, and close to crying, though in rage or anguish I couldn't tell. This must have been really hard for her.

"They're not from this world, Paige," said Chris softly, "They don't know what we have to do to survive. Things are different for them. They don't have to fight all the time." Paige sighed, and seemed to calm down slightly, though she was still frowning at me.

I wasn't sure whether I felt grateful to Chris or angry at him. He didn't know what Rogue and I had gone through with Magneto, or what I'd gone through with whatever happened to me at Alkali Lake. I looked at Paige and Chris with a new respect, but also with a deeper distrust. They killed daily, if this day was in the norm. And it seemed to be. Neither Paige nor Chris seemed unduly worried that they had been attacked by demons. They were strong, but dangerous also. We'd have to be careful. . . .

"Fine." said Paige, "But next time, we do this my way. Truth spells usually backfire on us." She orbed away to get the Book. I looked back at the demon. He looked, if anything, more worried then before. Why? Did he know something useful that he didn't want to betray? We'd find out.

I looked back at Rogue, and she seemed calmer. Her tears had vanished, and she wasn't shaking anymore. I sighed. This world had so many new complications. I wish I could just scratch them away with my claws.

Paige orbed back downstairs, holding a green covered book, which was already open. She started chanting:

"_**For those who want the truth revealed  
Opened hearts and secrets unsealed  
For now until it's now again  
After which the memory ends"**_

The demon glowed golden, before turning back to his normal color.

"That wasn't the whole spell," said Chris, turning to Paige, looking troubled. Paige nodded.

"Yeah, If I'd finished it, none of us in the house would be able to tell lies; this way only the demon can."_  
_

I'm glad Paige didn't finish the spell. It's not like Rogue or I had anything to hide, but it was giving someone a lot of power over you, being unable to lie. Paige put the Book on the couch, and walked up to the demon.

"Who sent you?" she asked, her voice once again under control.

"Nandor." said the demon, and his eyes widened as he answered, the spell controlling his words. "Vanquish me now, witch," he said angrily, "I will not be subjugated to this humiliation."

"Sure you won't." said Paige sarcastically, "What's your name, and why did you come after us?"

"I am Mool. I was sent to kill the white-and-brown-haired witch."

My eyes widened, and I turned to Rogue, who was looking worriedly at me. "Why would he care about Rogue?" I asked Paige, looking back at Rogue.

"I don't." said the demon, the spell must have forced him to answer any question asked, "Nandor has been ordered by Gorgog to kill the Twice-Blessed Child, and the witch with brown and white hair."

Paige looked shocked, and Chris had wiped all emotion from his face, which was considerably paler then seemed right. Who was the Twice-Blessed Child? Who cared? Why did the demon want Rogue dead? I was about to ask the demon, when he started to wince in pain. His face twisted in agony, and he screamed suddenly before exploding within the force-field, which lowered itself at the death of the demon. How did it die? I glanced at Rogue, but she seemed ok. I hoped so.

"Damn it." said Paige angrily, picking up the Book again, "Stupid demon overlords."

_Chris's POV_

The Twice-Blessed Child. They wanted to kill the Twice-Blessed Child. Wyatt, my brother, future Source of All Evil, was wanted dead. Rogue was wanted dead too. What could that mean? What was the connection? I'd never heard of Naldor or Gorgog in the Future. Were they the ones that turned Wyatt, or did they just want him dead? Paige was flicking quickly through the Book of Shadows, but I knew she wouldn't find anything. If I didn't remember those demons, they wouldn't be in the Book yet.

I looked at Rogue, who seemed shaken, but also seemed to be filling with resolve. I couldn't figure her out. She had a lethal power, one that could be used in devastating ways, but she was good. She helped me, she knocked out the demon, and she seemed like a normal teenager, although slightly battle-hardened. She could be a threat, but not enough of one to cause demons to go after her. Did she have hidden, or dormant powers? Or did she have _potential_ for great power, but hadn't reached the time of power activation?

Rogue and Logan weren't in my past. I would have known about them if they were. Maybe this was part of a grander design. Maybe Rogue and Logan were the key to helping me save Wyatt. Maybe they were sent here, without knowing it, to help me change history. But, if that was true, I'd have to be able to keep Rogue safe. Logan was a good fighter, but he'd almost gotten his head blown off by a fireball. He couldn't know what was going on everywhere at once.

But, that was an idea too. Prue and Piper had once used a telepathy spell on each other. What if I cast one on Logan and Rogue? I would be able to keep an eye on them to make sure they didn't blow my cover, and be able to protect them at the same time. I'd cast the spell later

"I can't find them in the Book," said Paige angrily as she snapped the Book shut.

"There's some blood on the floor," I said, using the excuse to make Paige focus away from me, "You can use some of it to scry for the demon." Paige nodded and walked away, looking for a large enough bloodstain to use for scrying.

"Rogue, Logan, can I talk to you for a minute?" I asked politely, before walking into the kitchen.

Rogue and Logan followed. "What is it?" asked Rogue.

"Don't panic," I said, and I started to chant the spell.

"_**As flame lights shadow, and truth ends fear,  
Open locked thoughts to my mind's willing ear  
May the smoke from this candle into everywhere creep,  
Bring innermost voices to mind and speech."**_

Nothing visible happened to Rogue or Logan, but Logan quickly grabbed Rogue and pulled her behind him. "What did you do?" he demanded, and I saw him tense up, just the way he had before, when he attacked me earlier.

I smiled. "_This,"_I thought-spoke towards Logan and Rogue's minds. Logan's eyes quickly darted around the room, before he looked back at me.

"_I thought only the Professor could do that," _Logan thought to himself, but thanks to the spell, I heard his thought as clearly as if he'd spoken it out loud. I smiled, relieved at my success.

"_Now you can do it too." _I thought-spoke at Rogue and Logan.

"But we're not telepathic," said Rogue.

"The spell I cast lets us hear each others thoughts," I said aloud, before switching to mind-speech, _"Just in case we need each other's help."_

"Why would we need your help?" said Logan angrily. I sighed angrily; didn't they get it?

"The demons are after Rogue, and Wyatt – Piper's son –," I said, responding to the blank looks on their faces when I said Wyatt's name. "I need to protect Wyatt, you need to protect Rogue. If we can communicate like this, we can watch out for the other."

Logan looked at me like I was insane. Rogue looked nervous, but excited. "I need your help." I said, "And I know this world a lot better then you. With my orbing," I gestured to Logan, "Your claws," and I gestured to Rogue, "And your borrowing power, we can stop any demon who might be a danger to us."

Logan still looked suspicious, but Rogue, touched his shoulder lightly with her gloved hand, before stepping out from behind him to stand nearer to me. "Don't worry so much," she said, "He means only good."

"But, how can you tell?" said Logan, distrust still lingering in his eyes.

"Because I _feel_ what he wants, and he's telling the truth, Logan," said Rogue.

Logan sighed, and looked at me angrily, but not in a threatening way. "Fine." he said, which I knew was as good as I was gonna get from him.

"_Ok, remember, we have to keep this a secret,"_ I said in mind-speech. Logan and Rogue nodded. Finally, something was going right. Now we could focus on saving Wyatt...

**Don't forget that reviews are always welcome, and appreciated with open arms! Enjoy the chapter, and REVIEW! **


	5. Memories and Confusion

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. (Try to get me now lawyers, I dare ya!) Enjoy the story! By the way, I KNOW I got the quotes wrong, but I don't have to X-Men movie, so I'm sorry for that. The Italics is still Chris, but he's seeing Rogue's memories through her eyes, so he thinks he's Rogue. Get it? If not PM me, and I'll explain it better.**

_Rogue's POV_

I nodded to Chris with Logan. It made sense that we had to keep this secret from the sisters. I felt from Chris that it was important that the sisters didn't know about the link. They might think we didn't trust them. I liked the feeling of the link; I felt open. My mind was freer then I ever thought possible and I was getting emotional vibes as well as thoughts from Chris and Logan. I guess it must have been because we'd opened our minds to each other, not just our thoughts. But the link was also a little scary; I felt like if I strayed to far away from my mind, I would lose myself. Was this how the telepaths at the school felt? It was an interesting feeling.

"Why is it so important for you to protect Wyatt?" asked Logan suddenly, looking at Chris with interest, "I get that you have to protect the family, but I'm getting a..." Logan paused as he looked for the right word.

"Vibe?" I offered.

"Yeah, vibe," said Logan, "That he means more to you for some reason. Like you're focused on him more then the sisters."

I got a brief feel of worry and annoyance from Chris's mind. I wondered if Logan could pick up feelings too. I focused on feeling scared, thinking of nightmares and Magneto, and projected those thoughts at Logan. Logan turned to me within a second, and Chris looked at me in alarm.

"What's happening?" said Chris, looking around him for danger.

"Magneto?" asked Logan.

I shook my head, feeling embarrassed now. I didn't really expect it to work. I'd hoped it was my own special power. I'd be nice to have a non-destructive power.

"When you were talking to Chris I felt his emotions," Chris and Logan both looked surprised, "I just wanted to see if you could feel mine too."

"It must be a side effect of the mental connection," Chris said, more to himself then to Logan or I.

"So we're gonna feel what everyone else is feeling?" Logan asked Chris, clarifying.

Chris rubbed his eyes wearily and nodded. "I guess so."

"But wouldn't that be bad?" I asked, "If we feel what the other two are feeling, how can we tell whose feelings are whose?"

Chris sighed, and I felt a rush of weariness and stress from his mind, "We'll just have to be careful. Build barriers around our thoughts so we don't get into our private business. If we only use the connection to talk to each other when we're in danger, we should be able to keep out of each other's feelings."

Logan didn't look reassured, and I felt a new wave of suspicion cross his mind.

"Hey, I felt that!" said Chris, insulted.

"Sorry," said Logan, but I could feel that he didn't mean it.

"Mind your vibes, Logan," I told him softly. Chris didn't deserve to be insulted inside his own mind. No one did, really.

I turned to Chris, "So how do we build a barrier?"

"Just focus on one thing. Focus on keeping your thoughts your own, to block them against everyone else. It helps if you pick an object, like a brick. See the brick in your minds eye,"

I closed my eyes and pictured a brick, red and brown, with mortar around the edges. I focused so completely on the brick that I didn't even here Chris speaking anymore, even though a part of me knew that he was.

"_Did it work?" _asked Chris's mental voice, and my focus shattered. The brick vanished and I felt my mind bare to Chris and Logan. I opened my eyes and looked at Chris with slight annoyance. Wasn't he supposed to be the expert of this world?

"Why didn't it work?" demanded Logan, sharing my feelings.

"I don't know," said Chris, shrugging, "It's worked against telepaths before."

I realized something though. We_weren't_ telepaths. "But, we're not telepaths." I said out loud, "We have a telepathic connection to one another's _minds_. Our minds are joined together."

"Then I don't think the normal stuff applies," said Logan to Chris, "Is there any _other_ way to keep our feelings separate from each other?"

Chris ran his hand through his hair as he thought. "No," he said finally, "It's like Rogue said. Our minds are joined, there's no way to break away from a connection like that. We're just gonna have to keep our thoughts and feelings to ourselves as much as we can."

"And how are we supposed to do that --" started Logan, but then we heard a door slam and Piper's voice. _"This isn't over,"_ Logan mind-spoke to Chris.

Just then Piper, Phoebe, and Paige came into the room. "So, I've found the demons," said Paige, "There are two, Nandor and Gorgog. I've found them both, and Nandor is nothing to worry about. He's a Clan leader, but he can be vanquished with a Power of Three spell."

"So, that's good?" I asked tentatively.

"_It means it won't be too hard to vanquish him,"_ Chris's mental voice explained to me, and I felt a mental grunt from Logan, which meant Chris had spoken to him, too.

"Yes," said Phoebe, "That's the easy part. But, Gorgog wasn't in the Book of Shadows."

"What does that mean?" asked Logan eyes darting to each of the sisters.

"It means that we don't know who he is, or what his powers are." said Piper seriously.

"So what are you gonna do?" I asked, "You can't go up against him if you don't know what he can do."

I felt an urge to keep the sisters safe, keep Piper safe. It didn't make sense. I followed the feeling in my mind and found that it was coming off Chris. Why was Piper more important to protect then Phoebe or Paige? He wanted to protect them all, but Piper _even_ more so. What was the connection?

"A Power of Three spell should be enough," said Piper.

"And I made a vanquishing potion while I was waiting for Piper and Phoebe to come home, just in case," said Paige, taking out a vial with red liquid in it and wiggling it slightly.

"So, we'll be fine," said Phoebe, "Just keep and eye on Wyatt. Leo will probably come down later, too."

When Phoebe said Leo's name, I felt a surge of hate from Chris, before he quickly quelled it. I felt him bury it deep within himself. I wondered why he was acting so strange about Leo and Piper. I followed the feeling in Chris's mind. I wanted to see what it was. What he was hiding.

_Chris's POV_

Leo, Leo, Leo. Why was he the way he was in this time? I almost wished he could act like he did in the Future. Then I could hate him, and have a reason for doing so. Here, I had to play nice with him; I understood that he hadn't done anything yet, but he would still _do_ it! Even if I did turn Wyatt good, Leo would still be Leo, almost never dad or father.

I saw Rogue's eyebrow twitch, and realized that my emotions were broadcasting to Rogue and Logan. I looked at Logan, and saw that he was looking strained too. I pushed the emotions down, focusing on the here and now, not the Future. I felt a touch in my mind, a featherlight touch, that I immediately recognized as Rogue, though I don't know how. She had touched my feeling of hate towards Leo with her mind, and she followed the feeling as I pushed it down into me.

I would not let her see who I was. I was only safe in secrecy. She could never understand that need for scarcity, and what I had gone through to learn that. I would not let her see this part of me that was so fragile and raw. When Piper died, I'd only had Leo left. Some wounds never heal, and Leo was one of those wounds.

I focused on Rogue's mental probe, and put my own between her and my memory. Her probe tried to dart past mine, but I grabbed it, and_forced_ it to go up, away from the memory. Her probe vanished and I felt only the open feeling the spell had caused. My memory was safe, and so was I. For now anyway.

"Okay," I told Piper, Phoebe and Paige, "Good luck vanquishing the demon."

"Thanks," said Phoebe.

"See you soon," said Piper, as Paige grabbed Piper and Phoebe's hands and orbed out.

The minute their orbs vanished I turned to Rogue angrily. "What the hell were you doing?" I asked. She looked nervous, but defiant too.

"I just wanted to see what you're hiding from us, Chris. We share minds now, we should – no – we _have_ to be able to trust each other. But even if Logan and I trust you, you have to be willing to trust us."

"She's right, kid," said Logan.

Kid? Who was the kid? After all I'd seen and lived and gone through, I was not a _kid_. I'm young in years, but I've probably seen far more then Logan or Rogue ever had. "I'm not a kid," I said out loud, pleased to hear my voice stay in control. Sharing minds had a lot of consequences that I hadn't foreseen, "And just because we're sharing minds, doesn't mean we have to tell each other everything about ourselves. I'm sure you have things you want to keep private."

"Sharing minds is more then that," said Logan abruptly. He looked like he was serious, "We're linked, and for our safety, we need to stay that way. We have to be able to trust ourselves and each other to come when needed. We can't do that if you close yourself off to us."

I felt Rogue and Logan's minds touch each other gently, reassuringly. Part of me wanted to have that type of connection; someone I could trust with everything, trust to worry for me, and to fight for me when I couldn't anymore. But it was impossible. I had to protect Wyatt and my future. I _had_ to. But how could I, if my thoughts and plans weren't private anymore?

"I have an idea," said Rogue suddenly, "What if we showed each other our memories? We would understand each other then, any be able to trust each other."

"No way," I said, "It's too risky. We could drive each other insane with our respective memories. No one would know who they were."

Rogue turned to Logan, "What do you think?" she asked.

Logan was quiet for a moment, before he turned back to me. "It might work. We could remind each other who we are, and we _have_ to be able to trust each other with our lives." Logan turned to Rogue, "But, it could also be dangerous. The Professor didn't show me all my memories, you'll only get the small bits I can remember. It's some scary stuff."

"Also we'll see the memories like it's happening to us," I said, "We'd relive everything every one of us has _ever_ felt." I turned to Rogue, "Can you live with that?"

"Look, Chris, none of our lives have been easy. Rogue and I are tough. We can take whatever it is you show us. Can you do the same? We _need_ to do this, otherwise just get rid of the link now."

Logan folded his arms and looked at me. I turned my gaze to Rogue and saw that she was watching me too, looking for my reaction. I felt cornered. Both Rogue and Logan would only trust me if we shared memories, but trust was essential if we were going to have the mind connection. I ran the situation over in my mind, but I didn't see any way to twist it to my advantage. I needed the link of our minds to ensure Wyatt's safety. I would have to give over my memories, for Wyatt's sake.

"Fine," I said, though I still didn't want to do this, "Who goes first?" We were all quiet for a moment as we looked around at each other, all of us unwilling to be the first.

Rogue took a small step forward, "I'll do it."

"Are you sure?" asked Logan, and I felt his affection for her in my mind.

"I'm sure." They both looked at me.

I sighed before rubbing my eyes and nodding to Rogue. "Just project your memories into our minds, we should experience them like you did." Rogue nodded and closed her eyes. My last thought before her memories enveloped me was that I hoped I was emotionally strong enough to survive this. I saw some of her memories as clear as if they were my own, but others passed by in a blur, and I got emotions and feelings stronger then any concrete pictures. I surrendered my mind to Rogue's memories.

_I don't know who I am. Now I know, I am Marie, not yet Rogue. I pull open the front door of my house, dragging my book bag in behind me before I close the door. "Mom, dad, I'm home!" I announce, before turning around and locking the door. I toss my book bag onto the floor before walking to the kitchen, looking for some yogurt. Mom, dad, and two of my friends are waiting for my in the kitchen and each of them is wearing a blue cone-shaped party hat. _

"_Surprise!" they yell with glee, as my jaw drops and I walk towards them. Mom takes out a chocolate cake and puts it on the counter as I walk slowly towards it. _

"_Happy birthday, honey."_

_Now, I'm in a bedroom with a boy. We start to kiss; first slowly, nervously, then full of passion. Our eyes close in the joy of it. I feel like I could fly! The boy's eyes popped open and you can see the veins in his face and neck strain and become prominent under his skin. The boy falls back onto the bed; I open my eyes, and realize that I hurt the boy. I get up, screaming, and stands by my closet. How could I have hurt him? I didn't mean to, I didn't mean to! What was happening to me? Dad and mom rush into my room. Mom tries to comfort me, but it's no use. Can' t they see that I'm the one who's hurt him? I'm a monster. Dad screams at me and mom to call an ambulance, but I can't stop crying. Mom tries to touch my shoulder to calm her down, but I scream, crying hysterically, realizing that it's my skin that did this to him. I hurt him. _

"_Get away from me!" I cry, and my mom backs away. _

_I go into my mom's closet and take out a black hooded cloak. I take a duffel bag out of the closet that we used to use for camping trips. I fill the duffel with three sets of clothes, my toothbrush, all $50 of my money, a container of vegetables, and two loaves of bread. I don't like stealing from my family, but I'm to dangerous. I could hurt them, it's better if I go. Besides, why would they want a daughter who could kill someone with a handshake? No, I would have to leave them behind. For good. I didn't really know where I was going. Just away. Before I left my room, I took a map of the country out of my closet, folded it up and put it in my coat pocket._

_I walked for five blocks, when I saw a delivery truck driving slowly on the street. I ran into front of the truck and it stopped short, honking, but I wouldn't move. The driver, a beefy grizzly man, came out of the truck angrily. _

"_What 'n the hell's your problem!?" he said loudly. _

"_I need a ride," I said, taking out and unfolding my map, "Can you take me to Lawson City?" It was close enough that the driver shouldn't say no, but far enough that I couldn't be found. Good. _

"_You a runaway?" asked the driver. I nodded. "Fine, but I ain't goin' no farther'n that."_

_I nodded and got into the truck, grateful to get a ride. _

_I dozed on and off in the truck, clutching my duffel with my gloved hands. Eventually, when I was awake, the truck driver stopped in a dingy-looking town._

"_I thought you said you'd take me as far as Lawson City," I said nervously._

"_This is Lawson city." he said before walking into the bar without a backward glance. _

_I looked nervously around the dirty rural town, and followed the driver into the bar. I'd figure out what to do later. I'd need to find another way to travel. I couldn't walk all the way to wherever I was going. I didn't even know where I was going, just away, and that was all that mattered. _

_I sat in the dirty bar at on a stool at the actual bar. I ordered a glass of water for a $1.50, and got two refills, which were free. There was a metal-fence cage in the center of the bar, where men wrestled inside. Logan, though I didn't know him as that yet, was there, dressed in a white undershirt, and blue denim jeans. He was kicking a man hard against the The man slouched down on the floor, and a bell rung three times._

_The announcer announced that the winner was Wolverine, which was what Logan called himself before I met him. Logan shook his head, sending sweat flying, as he retreated to a wall of the cage and took a drink of something, while ignoring the protesting crowd. Logan had a winning streak, and the crowd was after new blood. _

_Another man entered the cage and the announcer whispered something to him, before the man laughed and he walked away. The man went to Logan, who was still drinking, and had his back turned to the approaching man. The man kicked him hard, and Logan fell on the ground, where the man kicked him again. _

_Then Logan got up and started to beat the crap out of the other man. The man fell and lay on the ground. The bell was rung three times again, as the announcer again announced the victory of Wolverine. Logan walked out of the cage, put on a white t-shirt, and a brown leather jacket, and sat at the bar. He ordered a beer, as he took out and lit his cigar. A news report is playing on the bar's TV, a report about mutants. I look up to watch it, and I see Logan do the same out of the corner of my eye._

_Three men approached Logan from behind; one of them was the one Logan had just beaten in the cage, and he had the confident look of a blackmailer. He tells Logan that he owes him money. He says that no one recovers from a beating that fast. He whispers in Logan's ear, "I know what you are," he threatens, but Logan doesn't respond. The man draws out a knife and prepares to stab Logan. I scream, "Look out!", and Logan turns to face the man with lighting reflexes. He knocks the knife out of the man's hand, and pushes him into a wooden pillar, with his fist near his throat. Two of Logan's claws are out, one on either side of the man's neck. Logan's middle claw slowly extends until it lightly touches the man's throat. Wolverine was a mutant, a mutant like me. He has powers, and he is strong, but dangerous also. He can protect me, maybe. A rifle barrel touches the side of Logan's head. I get scared for him, I don't want him to die._

_The gun is held by the barman, who says "Get out of my bar, freak," to Logan. The barman is prejudiced and he is stupid. He doesn't see that mutants are humans too. Not all of us can control our powers. Logan looks strained, and suddenly the claws come out of his other hand, slicing the rifle in half. The barman backs away while Logan keeps his claws extended threateningly. He stares at the barman, and the man he has pinned for a moment. I almost think he looks at me for a moment. He draws his claws back in and walks out of the bar. This is my chance, I have to follow him before he leaves. Maybe he can help me._

_I follow him out of the bar, careful to stay about seven paces behind him. He goes to a mobile home which has a type of cart on the back of it. There are different bags on the cart and I quickly crawl into it as Logan gets inside the front seat of the car. Exhausted with worry and relief, I fell asleep._

_I felt a nudge. A poke. I got up wearily. "What are you doing?" demanded Logan. _

"_I'm sorry," I said, sitting up, "I needed a ride."_

"_Get out." said Logan. _

"_Where am I supposed to go?" I asked as I got out, dragging my duffel behind me. We were in the middle of a snow-covered road, with trees on either side. No sign of buildings anywhere._

"_I don't know." said Logan indifferently._

"_You don't know, or you don't care?" I asked._

"_Pick one." he said as he gave me a small glare before turning back and getting inside the van._

"_I saved your life!" I called as he closed the door. I needed someplace to go. If I didn't get inside somewhere, I would die of exposure to the snow and cold._

"_No you didn't." called Logan as he started to drive away. He drove for a few seconds and then stopped. He was letting me come with him. I slung my duffel over my shoulder and ran to the van. I opened the door and got inside, relieved by the small heat of the radiator. _

_I sat in the van next to Logan. He turned the heater on and opened the glove compartment, putting some beef jerky on my lap. I took off my hood and gloves, rubbing my hands to warm them up. Logan reached for my gloveless hands, telling me to put them by the heater, but I pulled them away._

"_I'm not gonna hurt you, kid." he said, insulted. I felt embarrassed._

"_It's nothing personal," I said, "But when people touch my skin, they get hurt."_

"_How?" he asked._

"_I dunno. They just do." _

"_Fair enough."_

_There was an awkward silence, "I'm Rogue." It was what I was, and who I always would be. An outsider._

_Logan snorted, "What kind of a name is Rogue?"_

"_What kind of a name is Wolverine?" I retorted. I looked at Logan's knuckles, he skin where the claws had come out was smooth and flawless. "Does it hurt when they come out?" I asked. _

"_Every time." said Logan._

_I slid over some memories. Sabertooth's attack, arriving at the school. I belonged. I had friends. I met Bobby, the Iceman. I met John, who controlled fires. I met Juballee, Jean Grey, the Professor, Storm, and Cyclops. I went to class I made friends. I talked with Logan. I was happy._

_It was night. It's awoken from a nightmare. I went to Logan's room, I wanted to talk to him. He was moving in his sleep, twitching and muttering._

"_Logan," I whispered, almost touching him, but pulling back my gloveless hand. I'd forgotten my gloves when I'd left my room. Logan mumbled in his sleep, twitching, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion in his sleep. _

"_Logan," I whispered again. Then, he suddenly woke up screaming, his claws out he slid them through my stomach. I felt pain, pain, fiery pain. I gulped, tried to talk. I saw Logan's eyes dart from me to his claws helplessly, as he retracted his claws and shouted for help. _

_I held out my hand. I needed to touch him. I could borrow his healing power. My hand touched his cheek lightly, but I held on. I felt better instantly, I felt my body knit itself together, my blood clotting, warmth returning to my stomach. I looked at Logan's face and saw that his mouth was open, veins sticking out of his neck and face. I let go and he fell to the ground, spasming. _

_I turned and saw Storm behind me, and about fifteen kids outside the door, all staring at me with mixed expressions. _

"_I didn't mean to," I told Storm, before leaving Logan's room for the shelter and privacy of my own.I didn't mean to hurt him, to hold on that long. I should've let go sooner. Would they kick me out of the school? Would I have to run away again?_

_I slid over more memories, saw the betrayal of Bobby; telling me to run away, telling me to leave, for the safety of the other students. He said the Professor was furious at me, angry at me, that he didn't know what to do with me. I left. I packed. I went to the train station._

_More memories flew before my eyes. When Logan talked to me on the train, convincing me to stay. I was able to hug Logan. He held me tight to him, his clothes protecting him from me. I was going to go back to the school when Magneto arrived. He hurt Logan. He wanted me. I ran, and darkness followed a dart in my neck._

_When I woke up I was handcuffed to a rail in a boat. I saw Mystique, a beautiful, deadly, shapeshifter, walk past.Magneto gave me a lecture about the Statue of Liberty. Of Peace and Liberty and Brotherhood of Mutants. It sounded important, but I asked the question that mattered most._

"_Are you going to kill me?" I'd seen the original driver of the boat on the floor, his eyes staring up, but unseeing. _

"_Yes." Magneto replied._

"_Why?" I asked, close to tears, but refusing to cry._

"_Because there is no land of promise, there is no peace," he said, "But, with your sacrifice, they will join our Brotherhood, as mutants. Our fate will be theirs. I understand if that's no small consolation."_

_Now I was on top of the Statue of Liberty, on the torch. I was handcuffed to two small metallic poles, and I was near tears. I was going to die. To be gone from this world forever. To be little more then a shell. Magneto walked up to me with Sabertooth behind him. Magneto kneeled in front of me, his hands moving closer and closer to my face._

"_No," I whispered, barely able to contain my fear and panic._

"_I'm sorry," he said, and then he touched my cheeks with his hands._

_I closed my eyes and willed my powers to fail, I willed that nothing would happen. But it did. I felt his power flow into me, felt myself become aware of all the metal in the air. My hands were suddenly attracted to the metal poles and they clamped down on them, like magnets. _

_Magneto let go, and walked away, Sabertooth behind him, supporting him. I felt the machine draw on my power, draw on me. I started to hyperventilate. I was going to die, I was going to die. Suddenly, the torch above me shattered as my power spun the rings of the machine. I white light started to spread from the spinning rings, but I didn't care anymore. I closed my eyes, and dealt with the pain of my life fleeing my body. I screamed and felt tears running down my face. I felt drained, utterly and completely, nothing was in control. And then my world blacked, and I lost all sound._

I woke up and realized two things at once. One: I wasn't Rogue, I was Chris Perry Halliwell. I'd been so enveloped in her memories, I'd forgotten who I was. I'd believed I was her. I tried to focus on exactly what it felt like to be Rogue, to separate her from myself, but I mostly remembered feelings and glimpses of memory. I remembered how Rogue felt when she found out about her power, when she was kidnapped by Magneto, when she stabbed Logan. The second thing I realized that I was lying on the floor. My eyes were still closed, so I opened them with a start, and sat up.

I looked up into the faces of a worried Rogue and Logan, as I got up and looked around the kitchen.

"You okay?" asked Logan, and I felt the worry in his mind.

I rubbed my head where it had been lying on the floor. "Yeah... Why didn't you fall?" was I the only one to have fainted?

"I'd already lived through some of Rogue's memories. I knew her, so I was able to keep control." said Logan.

It made sense. Logan was more attuned to Rogue, so he would've been able to remember who he was and not get lost in her memories. I had no such luck. I turned to Rogue and looked at her with a new respect. She'd been through a lot, and was strong, and trustworthy. I couldn't say the same thing about me.

"I'm sorry," I told her, and found that I really meant it. She'd been through a lot.

Her mind soothed me as she said, "It's ok. I understand. Don't worry about it,"

I felt so guilty now for having suspected her. Logan was probably just as honorable. Who was I compared to Rogue? I'd lied and hurt so much. I'd killed. I'd worked with demons. But, it was what I'd had to do to survive. I couldn't change what I'd done, but by coming back and saving Wyatt, and now Rogue as well, maybe I could save the Future.

I know the chappie was a bit confusing. If there's anything you guys don't get, PM me, and I'll get back to you. Other then that, REVIEW!!! Also, I appreciate it when you put the story in your fav's and alerts, but reviews are wanted most. Constructive criticisms is good too. REVIEW!!!


	6. Chris's Memories Part 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men, though I did make up the spells. Sorry it's been so long, but my teachers decided to spring my midterms on me. I'm totally drained, and Thanksgiving was...shudder...difficult. I'll try to be more loyal by giving you big chapters. **

**The memories are in Italics. Enjoy. WARNING!! This chapter gets a bit graphic.**  
I made up most of Chris's memories. In the next chapter we're going to see more of Chris's memories, but I don't want to write a novel in this chapter. I will update soon, so look forward to the rest of Chris's memories.

_Logan's POV_

I'd never thought Chris could seem so... weak. When Rogue had showed us her memories, I'd been able to hold on to who I was. But Chris had fainted. I had opened my eyes to see him shaking on the floor. His face had matched Rogue's memories perfectly. It was like he thought he was her. Now he was standing, pale and tall, but not cocky. He seemed to really respect Rogue now. It was strange, to see what had happened, through her eyes.

But, now the more pressing matter: who was next? Who was gonna show their memories next? I didn't want to. To lay myself completely bare like that in front of _Chris_? I might tolerate the guy, and I understood why we had to show each other our memories, but I didn't like it. Or him. He was still a lying piece of shit.

As I looked at the lying piece of shit, I realized that he looked determined. For what?

"So..." I asked, breaking the silence between us, "Who's going next?"

There was a small pause before Chris said, "I'll do it."

Rogue looked into Chris's still-pale face. "Are you sure?"

Chris nodded. "I want to show you. You need to see what I've been through, and what I've done." Chris looked at me and Rogue square in the eyes. "I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of."

I felt Rogue's mind soothe Chris's. I wanted to make the dickhead feel better, but I didn't really know how. Friendship is hard.

"We've all done things we wish we didn't." I said, trying to make Chris feel a bit better. Chris nodded. He closed his eyes, and projected his past to us. I touched Rogue's mind for support, before my own mind was overthrown by Chris's memories.

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_I'm young. I'm small. Things are bright and dark and strange shapes and colors. I am Chris, I am me. I'm hungry. I cry. I feel something. People are scared. People are sad. As I am fed, I realize that the sadness is anger too. I feel the connection to my family as I see my dad orb away. I feel that he is mad. Then I get a feeling. I'm scared. I cry, louder then before. Something bad is happening. I feel it._

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_I'm five now, and happy. I'm in a play in school for Christmas. I get to play a tree, with lots of presents sitting at my feet. I hold mom's hand as she walks me to school. My brother, Wyatt, is walking next to me, holding my other hand. Mom says that on the day I was born, Wyatt went missing, but then dad found him. Dad is a hero. I love my brother, I want to make him happy. He's angry a lot._

_Inside the school, mom helps me put on my costume. During the show I look for mom and see her an Wyatt in the front row waving and smiling at me. But where is dad? After the show when I'm walking home with mom I stop and look up at her. _

"_Mom, where's dad?" I ask. Mom looks back at me sadly._

"_Oh, Peanut, he had to work today."_

"_But, mom, he didn't come to any of my plays, and he came to all of Wyatt's. Does he only work when I have plays? Didn't he want to see me be a tree?"_

_Mom bent down and put her hands on my shoulders, "Honey, of course your dad wants to see you. He's very busy."_

"_But will he see my next play? Or will he visit soon? He's not home a lot." I was smart, I knew dad wasn't home much. He didn't like me._

"_He'll try." said mom, "But even if he can't come, I'll always see your plays, Peanut."_

"_Me too," said Wyatt, "You're good at saying lines. You fool people into really believing the story."_

_I glowed with pride. Mom and Wyatt loved me._

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_I'm ten now. I orb home from the school bathroom into the house. There's a huge rainstorm outside today, and I didn't want to walk home. Especially with Wyatt. He's a good brother, but he changes moods so fast. Most of the time, he's great and supportive, just like he should be, but sometimes he gets into really weird moods. He starts acting like a real jerk. Like today. He almost used his powers on a kid._

"_Mom, I'm home!" I call, and she comes out of the kitchen. _

"_Chris, what are you doing home early? You're 20 minutes early."_

"_Mom, did you look at the sky? There's a major thunderstorm going on right now. I orbed."_

_Mom looked at me sternly, "Chris! Did anyone see you?"_

"_I'm not that stupid, mom," I said, insulted. Of course I knew not to use my powers in public, "I orbed from the bathroom. I was the only one there. Happy now?"_

"_Drop that attitude young man," said mom, "Because, if you don't you're not getting any cookies."_

"_I'm a bit to old to be bribed with cookies, mom," I said, even as I breathed in the delicious smelling air, "What kind are they anyway?"_

"_Chocolate chip," she said, "Your favorite. But if you down want them..." mom shrugged, and I knew I was caught._

"_What? No!" Cookies were at stake, "I never said I didn't want any, I just meant that I'm too old to be bribed."_

"_Then do you want some? They just came out of the oven," said mom as she handed me a plate with four cookies on it. I siled and ate one, as mom gave me her triumphant smile. We split the cookies._

"_Hey, mom, is dad dropping by this weekend?" I asked, my mouth warm from cookies._

_A flash of pain went through my mom's eyes before she said, "No, Peanut, he can't."_

"_Don't call me Peanut," I said automatically as I thought about what mom had said._

_I felt angry. Every time dad came over he spent time with Wyatt, teaching him how to control his powers. He never spent time with me. Dad was supposed to come by every weekend, but the one time Wyatt was at a sleepover, dad wasn't coming. Mom could tell me all she wanted that dad did love me, but why wasn't he ever there for me? He never saw any of my school plays, he spent all his time here with mom and Wyatt, he ignored me to my face, and the one time that Darklighter hit me with an arrow, I called for dad three times. He didn't come, and I had to call for Aunt Paige to heal me. But then Aunt Paige had been attacked by different Darklighter, and we both nearly died before I called for Wyatt. It was Wyatt who managed to heal us. Not dad. He didn't care. I started to hate him._

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_I am thirteen. It's a Saturday, and I'm sitting on my bed, awake. I'm an early riser by nature, and I'm excited and nervous. Tomorrow's my birthday. There'll be cake and presents, I'll see my aunt and cousins, and maybe dad will actually drag his butt down from Elder-land to wish me happy birthday. Then I get to make my traditional wish that dad will love and accept me. I make that wish every year, but nothing changes. Maybe I'll wish something different this year. Who knows? I get dressed and walk down to the kitchen, passing Wyatt's room. I would have gone in, but I'd heard the crinkle of wrapping paper, and decided to wait the day for my present. No need to spoil my surprise. _

_I'm at the kitchen now, and I open the fridge to take out some bread. I butter the bread and put it in the toaster. Mom comes into the room._

"_Hey stranger," she says as she starts to set up coffee, "You'll be fourteen tomorrow."_

"_Really mom? I didn't know," I say sarcastically, and she smiles, "It's only what I've been waiting for all year."_

"_Acting like a teenager already," lamented mom to the skies, laughing,"What did I ever do to deserve this?"_

_We both laughed together, happily. The toaster dinged, and I got up and put my bread on a plate. I sat back down at the table._

"_So, who's coming to the party?" I ask, eating my toast._

"_Aunt Phoebe, Coop, Henry, Aunt Paige, Henry Jr., the twins, Melinda, Ladybug, and Grandpa." Mom recited while ticking off her fingers. _

_I swallowed and asked the question that was forefront in my mind, "What about dad?"_

_Mom sighs and looks at a scratch on the table before looking back up at me. "He's --"_

"_Busy." I cut her off, I felt to angry at dad, and at mom for defending him all the time, "Sure he is. Just like he's busy every time something do to with me is going on. Busy, busy, busy, that's always his excuse. You'd think he'd use a different one after a while. He's my father, and I barely know him. The only times I see him are when he takes Wyatt 'Up There' to be trained._

"_Chris," said mom, taking my hand and holding it with hers, "I've tried to talk to your dad, but he and the other whitelighters still have a lot of cleanup to do. The Battle of the Titans wiped out every Elder, putting the whitelighters in charge."_

"_Yeah, except he always comes down for Wyatt's birthday and on your anniversary."_

_Mom sighed again. "I'll try to talk to him about it again, Chris. But, it's your birthday in one day. Lets talk about something happier. _

_Later, it's at midnight, and we're celebrating my birthday. A midnight party was Aunt Phoebe's idea, and it's great. Who needs dad? I'm having plenty of fun without him. _

"_Okay, who wants cake?" called mom as she pulled a chocolate fudge cake out of the fridge. _

_Wyatt, my cousins, and I, ran to the table, all of us standing around it. Everyone started to sing 'Happy Birthday', Wyatt giving me a special smile. When the song was done, mom said, "Make a wish,"_

_I closed my eyes, and was thinking of a good wish when I heard a whiz in the air. I'd seen enough demon battles to know without opening my eyes that it was a Darklighter. I opened my eyes and saw Aunt Paige orbing all of my cousins, but not me or Wyatt, back to Aunt Phoebe's house. Henry, and grandpa ran out of the kitchen to hide in th attic. This was the way we always handled a demon attack when there were kids and mortals with us._

_Four more Darklighters appeared, and they all fired at once. An arrow came straight at me, and I ducked. The arrow flew over my head._

"_Arrows!" Aunt Paige called, sending the arrows into the chests of their Darklighters. The Darklighters vanished in bursts of flame._

"_Is everyone okay? Asked mom. As we all moved closer to talk to each other._

"_Yeah," Wyatt and I said at the same time._

"_We're good." said Aunt Paige, gesturing to Phoebe._

"_But why did the Darklighters do that?" said mom, "It doesn't make sense to attack us and then just leave."_

"_Maybe they thought they had enough to get you?" said Wyatt._

"_Yeah," I said, "There were five Darklighters. One for each of us. Someone knew we'd all be here today and wanted us dead."_

"_Yeah, but where's the second wave?" said Aunt Paige, "More demons should have come." _

_I heard another whiz in the air and then a thunk, and Aunt Paige fell to the floor. "Aunt Paige!" Wyatt and I yelled. The Darklighter already had another arrow in his crossbow. Mom moved her arms to blow him up, but he wasn't vanquished. He smiled. The Darklighter aimed at Wyatt with his crossbow. I moved my arm, sending a wave of telekinetic power across the room at the Darklighter. The Darklighter took one step backwards, but kept coming at us. _

"_Wyatt, Chris, orb out, now!" said mom as she repeatedly blasted the Darklighter. He still didn't die. _

_Wyatt looked back at mom and the Darklighter, and didn't orb._

"_Wyatt Matthew Halliwell, you will orb out of here right now, or I will ground you for a month!" Wyatt orbed out._

"_Chris!" yelled mom, as Phoebe tried to channel Piper's power to blast the demon with double fire-power._

"_I'm not leaving!" I yelled as I added my telekinetic powers to the mix. I sent books and chairs flying at the Darklighter, but even with both Piper and Phoebe blasting him, he still wouldn't die._

_The Darklighter shot Coop, who hadn't run upstairs with Henry and Grandpa. He had come out when the first wave had been vanquished, and now he was shot. "Coop!" yelled Phoebe._

_I realized something, we were trapped. The Darklighter couldn't die. We had to go, find a safe place to find a way to vanquish him. _

"_Mom we have to get out of here," I said, just as another Darklighter orbed in. He raised his crossbow. "Mom!" I yelled, and she turned, trying to blast the new threat. He wasn't being vanquished either. Both Darklighters raised their crossbows and shot at mom. The arrows were faster then my eyes or my powers could follow. I heard a double thunk, and mom fell to the floor, two arrows in her chest._

"_Wyatt!" I yelled, I needed his healing powers. Wyatt orbed in._

"_Chris, what's – MOM!" Wyatt ran to mom, and dodged an arrow shot at him by the second Darklighter. _

"_Wyatt, we gotta get them out of here!" I yelled, "Get Uncle Coop and Aunt Paige, I'll get Aunt Phoebe and mom." _

_Wyatt nodded and he ran to Uncle Coop and Aunt Paige, grabbed their hands and orbed them away. I ran to mom and Aunt Phoebe, ignoring the blood on my mom's chest as I orbed away to Magic School._

_I reformed in Magic School next to Wyatt. Dad orbed in suddenly. "What's happened, I sensed pain," he said._

"_Dad," said Wyatt, "Mom and Aunt Paige and Uncle Coop have been hurt."_

"_Piper," said dad, going to mom with a stricken face, as he pulled the arrows out of her chest. Mom still breathed, but just barely. Dad laid his hands over mom and Healed, the golden light flowing over mom's wounds, and... it wasn't working. She wasn't Healing. _

"_Dad, what's wrong?" asked Wyatt, his eyes never leaving mom._

"_Wyatt, Uncle Coop and Aunt Paige are still hurt." I said, as a terrible thought dawned on me, "Oh my god, we left Uncle Henry and grandpa at the house."_

_Dad looked at me with anger in his eyes, "You left them to the demons?!" he demanded._

"_I'll get them," I said, as I orbed back to the manor. In the manor I reformed in the attic where Uncle Henry and Grandpa were still alive._

_I sighed with relief, "We have to get to Magic School," I said as I took their hands._

"_What's happened?" asked Henry. I ignored the question and orbed them both to Magic School._

_As I reformed, Henry ran to Paige, who Wyatt was now trying to heal. Grandpa looked at the blood on the floor and fainted._

"_What's wrong with grandpa?" asked dad._

"_His emotions are on overdrive and his body couldn't handle it." said Wyatt. He was good with identifying causes of injuries, even mental ones. _

"_Wy-Wyatt, Chris," said mom softly. Wyatt and I both ran to her. Paige had fallen unconscious and mom wasn't being Healed. _

"_Mom, don't go. Don't die, you can't die. You're a Charmed One." I said, my eyes starting to tear up._

"_You can't die, mom," said Wyatt, "You have to stay for Chris's birthday. You have to make cake and cookies and kill the Darklighters."_

_Mom chuckled breathlessly, shaking, looking up at Wyatt and I and dad. "I love you all," she said, her voice was so soft. "Never give up." she said, looking at me in the eyes, "I love you all." Then she sighed, and she was dead._

_I burst into tears and hugged my mom's body, not caring about the blood on my shirt. I willed mom to be alive again, to give me a wisecrack or a joke, or even a grounding. She couldn't be gone, she couldn't be gone. I hugged her bloodless body and cried._

_Dad grabbed my shoulders and pulled me off mom. "Get away from her," he snarled, "It's your fault she's dead."_

_I stepped back, stung, still crying as dad lifted mom's body onto his lap and started stroking her hair, as though she was merely asleep. _

"_It's not my fault," I said, struggling to control my tears, "The demons wouldn't die."_

"_Then you should have called for me!" screamed father, "How could you stand back and watch my wife die?!"_

"_She was my mom too!" I yelled, my hands curling into fists. How can he blame me for this? It's his fault, he wasn't their to orb her away, to Heal her sooner. I had fought, I had saved Henry and grandpa, I had dodged arrows, and called Wyatt. I was there! _

_Wyatt didn't join our screaming match, he was kneeling on the ground next to mom, crying harder then me. I controlled my tears so I could talk straight. I couldn't lose myself to grief. "We have to help Paige and Coop, otherwise, they'll die too!" I told dad and Wyatt. None of them moved. _

"_I'm going to kill them!" screamed Wyatt suddenly, body tense, eyes nearly glowing with his rage. He orbed out of the School, ignoring Paige, ignoring Coop. All he wanted was revenge. I had to save the rest of my family. _

_I turned to the ceiling, calling the whitelighters. Their collective power had to be enough to save my Aunt and Uncle. It just had to be. The whitelighters came down and Healed them. Just barely. Dad didn't even notice, he just sat there, holding mom's body. _

_Paige stood up next to the silently crying Phoebe. "Piper?" she asked._

"_Dead." said dad, and my Aunts and Uncle's cried. I was hollow, I was stone. I wouldn't let myself cry anymore, I had to make sure Wyatt was okay. I orbed out after Wyatt, following his orb trail._

_Dead. My mom was dead._

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_After Wyatt killed the Darklighters, he changed. He brooded. He never smiled. Almost no one ever smiled anymore. Wyatt started hanging out in the Underworld. His hobby became killing demons. Wyatt didn't want to protect Innocents anymore, but he had no problems killing demons._

_I lived with Grandpa now, with Wyatt, but Wyatt was almost never home. Grandpa and I talked. We talked about family, friendship, and my mom's last words. "Never give up," she told me, and I know she was talking to me, because she was looking into my eyes alone when she said it. _

_Grandpa helped, but sometimes I had to help him. He had lost Prue before, and now mom. There were times when he just broke down in tears. I had learned to hide my tears, to hold them in. Crying wouldn't bring her back, and it would make me seem weak._

_Then, one day, I felt pain through my whitelighter sense. I didn't understand what was going on. The pain had the signature of Paige and Henry. Then I felt the pain of my cousins. All of my cousins. I orbed to them, making some excuse to grandpa. When I arrived, I couldn't believe what I saw . All of my cousins were dead and lying on the floor, pale and bloodless. There was blood all over the floor and walls of Henry's house, where I had orbed to. Aunt Paige and Uncle Henry were lying on the floor. The wound from an energy ball was in Paige's back, and Henry had a slash in his chest._

_I nearly gave in to my emotions. I wanted to scream and cry and pull out my hair in grief. They were dead, all my cousins, and another Aunt. I wanted to grieve over them, but I realized that Phoebe and Coop might be in danger. I orbed to them._

_When I reformed, I saw Wyatt, standing over the silently crying, crumpled form of Aunt Phoebe, who was holding Coop in her arms. I hid behind the overturned red sofa._

"_Why are you doing this?" said Phoebe, hugging the nonresponsive Coop to her body. _

"_Because I can." said Wyatt cockily, unconcernedly, casually bouncing an energy ball in his hand, "Because by killing you I strengthen myself. I gain power. Power that is so much more stronger then that of any being. No one can challenge me. By killing you, I have no weaknesses. I can dominate everyone."_

"_You killed them all, I felt it." said Aunt Phoebe, tears coursing down her face, "Only Chris, Victor, and Leo are still alive. Would you kill them too? Your father? Your grandfather? Your brother?"_

_That meant Coop was dead too. How could this be happening? How could Wyatt have done this? How could he even dream of killing our family? He was going to kill Phoebe, you didn't have to be psychic to know it. I wouldn't let him._

"_Leave her alone, Wyatt," I said, stepping out from my hiding place behind the sofa, "She's an Innocent."_

_Wyatt looked at me with mockery in his eyes. "Innocent?" he laughed, "Why should I care about any Innocents? What did they ever do for us?" now Wyatt's voice turned cruel, "They sent demons after us. We were so busy protecting Innocents that we didn't know about the Darklighters experiments. They mixed their blood to make stronger demons. That's why we couldn't vanquish them. That's why mom died; because of your precious, little Innocents."_

"_Aunt Phoebe didn't do anything wrong," I said, "Neither did Coop, or Aunt Paige, or Henry, or our _cousins_. You killed them."_

"_Power in the Halliwell line is diluted among us," said Wyatt, "The magic our line possesses is the strongest in the world. By killing our family, the power is no longer diluted. _I_ can be the strongest being in the world. I can rule over demons, over witches, and over whoever _I_ want."_

"_You're insane," I said, realizing the truth, "Wyatt, you've got to snap out of this. We can use Coop's ring to go back and make sure this never happens. Just, think about what you did. Think about who you are."_

"_I don't give crap." said Wyatt, "All I care about now, is power. And, I won't let you take it away from me." Wyatt threw his energy ball into Coop's body, and it burst into flames. Coop's ring slipped off his finger, and broke on Phoebe's floor._

_I used my telekinetic power, sending Wyatt flying across the room. I ran to Phoebe. "Aunt Phoebe, Aunt Phoebe, are you okay?" I asked, looking back to see Wyatt quickly walking towards us._

_Aunt Phoebe took her hand off her chest, and there was blood on it. "Run away," she said, crying as she died, "Be safe. Save him." Then Phoebe's head sagged to her side as, she too, died. Wyatt conjured up another energy ball, and I orbed away to grandpa. _

_When I got to grandpa, the first thing I did was put a cloaking spell on him. Unless Wyatt ran into him, he would never find or hurt grandpa._

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_It's been four months since Wyatt killed Aunt Phoebe and Coop. Wyatt has become the Source. I know this because, like Wyatt did, I spend a lot of time in the Underworld. I have several demon contacts now, and I keep up with the news. I protect Innocents whenever I can, but it's hard. Most of them don't think that a fourteen year old boy can offer much protection. A lot of them die, but I protect whoever I can. _

_Grandpa's been better. We still talk. It's because of him I have the strength to go on. He reminds me of what I've lost, and what I have to do to make sure it doesn't happen to other people. He's told me that mom and my aunts always believed that everything happened for a reason. Maybe we survived so we can stop Wyatt someday, like Mordred stopped King Aurthur. The only difference is, in my story, Mordred's good, and King Arthur gets his kicks by torturing Innocents._

_I have charges now. Two. One of them's named David, and the other is Emily. They're twins, and orphans the same age as me. Wyatt killed their parents. They live with their uncle. Both of them are potential whitelighters. At first I tried to give them to dad, but he hasn't talked to me since the day mom died. I wonder if he ever will again. _

_Suddenly I got a feeling of pain and fear coming from David and Emily. I orbed to them. I reformed in a back alley. Both David and Emily were lying crumpled against an old metal fence, and two black figures, demons, were standing over them._

_I controlled my panic and ran towards the demons, using my telekinetic power to send them smashing into each other. Suddenly I felt I fiery pain in the small of my back, and I fell to the ground in pain and surprise. I turned around and gingerly touched my back. It was bleeding, but not too much._

_Four demons were walking towards me, along with a blonde-haired woman in a red jacket. The woman pulled out a sheet of paper and chanted:_

_**"Witch to Witch I contain your powers.**_  
_**From Servant to Source, I give them.**__**  
Only the Source can give them back,**__**  
You can't defend against my attack."**_

_I felt a weakening, and them I saw blue and white lights come out of my body. I grabbed at the lights, but my hands slipped through them. The lights flew to the evil witch, that was the only thing she could have been, and she put the lights in a small vial, and corked it. _

_I waved my hand, willing her spell to have failed and for her to be sent flying. Nothing happened. She stole my powers. Damn it. I couldn't orb away. Suddenly in my mind I felt a blank empty feeling, and I instinctively knew that David and Emily, my first official charges, were dead. Damn again._

"_Now, little Halliwell, you're coming with us." she said._

"_No way in hell," I said. She was a servant to the Source, to Wyatt. Wyatt might kill me without my powers, I was completely defenseless. _

_The demons raised their right hands and conjured fireballs. The witch raised her eyebrows. "We don't want to damage you, Halliwell."_

_Damage? They didn't want to damage me? They talked like I was a package of goods. Maybe to them, I was. I glanced at the fireballs and the pitiless eyes of the demons and witch. Behind me, I knew there were at least two demons. Without my powers, there was no way I could escape. If I tried to attack the witch, I would get burned by the fireballs. _

"_No," I shook my head. I'd call dad, he'd have to come, even if I didn't have my powers._

"_Fine," said the witch. She held out her hand, and said a Latin one-word spell. "Sopio," she said, and I felt the power in the word. Then, I fell to the ground, wearier then any normal tiredness. My world went black..._

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_I woke up lying on a cold stone floor. I sat up and looked at my surroundings. I was in the Underworld, my senses told me. I was in a dank cave-like room. There was a man in front of me. My brother. Wyatt, holding Excalibur in his hand, and my corked powers on a string around his neck. _

"_Chris," he said calmly, "Nice of you to join me down here."_

_I bit off all my angry words, asking the important question. "What do you want with me?"_

_Wyatt chuckled. "I want you, little brother." Wyatt put his sword on the ground and leaned on it. "I'm the Source, Chris. The power I have, it's beyond belief. I want you to join me. I want us to rule the Underworld, as brothers. With your powers, all of our spells would be amplified. We would be able to take on even the gods."_

"_If all you want is my power, why am I still alive?" I asked. Wyatt wasn't the type to be kind to family._

"_What? You want to die?" asked Wyatt. I didn't answer. How could I? Wyatt continued, "Your powers alone are not enough. I need to be able to use our blood ties as brothers. In powers, there's nothing you can give me."_

"_You didn't mind killing our family," I said hotly, before berating myself. Wyatt was dangerous now, I had to control myself. _

"_Tsk, tsk," said Wyatt, shaking his head, "You still don't understand, do you, Chris? I did what had to be done." Wyatt gave me a look that would have looked brotherly under other circumstances, "Will you join me?"_

"_No," I said, keeping my voice in control, "You're evil now, Wyatt. I'll never join you. I have to find a way to make you good again."_

"_Such a pity, Chris," said Wyatt, his face turning ugly, "I'm not giving you a choice in the matter. You will join me. If you want to get your powers back, and avoid pain."_

_Wyatt flexed his fingers, and I felt his powers lock on me, and throw me across the cavern into the hard uneven wall. I felt the wound in my back start to bleed again. Wyatt's powers took a hold of me again, and I was sent flying into the other wall. I was thrown up into the air and thrown hard back onto the ground. I felt all the wind come out of me as I hit the ground. I still hadn't drawn breath before Wyatt's powers held me again, and lifted me into the air, throwing my down at Wyatt's feet. I drew in a quick breath, and saw Wyatt's black-booted foot in front of me. I reached for the boot, grabbing it, and pulling. Wyatt fell down, and I stood up and fell on top of him, reaching for the vial of my powers around his neck._

_I reached, but just as I cam close to grasping the string, Wyatt send my backwards with a burst of power. I landed on the ground, but was able to quickly stand up. Wyatt conjured an athame out of the air, and threw it at me. I ducked, dodging the dagger, but not the energy ball that Wyatt had thrown at me. The energy ball hit me in my shoulder, and I felt ice-hot pain in my shoulder._

_I grabbed my shoulder, and looked at Wyatt, looking for any chance to get my powers back. Wyatt came toward me and punched me in the face. The force of the punch was so strong that I ended up on the floor again. I moved to sit up, but found the cold steel of Excalibur at my throat. The steel pushed me back onto the ground, and I swallowed reflexively as the steel was pushed into the hollow of my throat. _

"_If you are not with me, Chris, then you are against me. Are you with me?" Wyatt pushed the sword so hard into my throat that it opened up a small cut and started to bleed. It was hard to breathe with all the pressure in my neck. _

"_No," I gasped out. I had to be strong, for mom. 'Never give up,' she said. I couldn't give up, I wouldn't._

_Wyatt sneered as he threw an energy ball into my stomach. I clenched up automatically, and the cut in my throat widened as I moved. Wyatt threw another energy ball, this one in my shoulder. I sucked in my breath to avoid moving and slitting my own throat. I clenched my hands into fists, squeezing my fingers together, to avoid moving or crying from the pain. _

_I quickly counted my injuries; my back and throat were bleeding, and I had been hit with an energy ball in both shoulders and my stomach. _

"_I could do this all day, Chris," said Wyatt, as he launched and energy ball into my thigh. I clenched my fists and teeth, managing to avoid screaming. Suddenly, I had an idea. It probably wouldn't work, and if it didn't I might die, but it was better then being tortured by my brother and_knowing_ I would die._

_Excalibur was a long sword, and it's hilt was parallel to my foot. If I could kick it away from my throat, I might be able to lunge at Wyatt, and get the vial that held my powers._

"_Still unwilling to give in, Chris?" asked Wyatt._

_I didn't say anything, but summoned my strength and kicked at Excalibur. Wyatt was surprised, and his hold on the sword wasn't tight, The sword fell out of his hand, and I rolled up and lunged at Wyatt, reached for the cord around his neck. I reached the vial and pulled open the cork. My powers flowed back into me, and even though Wyatt threw me to the ground, I got up with a new energy, ignoring the pain.. _

_I orbed away to grandpa's, and to the safety of the crystal circle I had set up around the house. I collapsed on the bed, totally spent and bleeding. I would find a healer later. Now, I slept._

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_Fighting became who I was. Wyatt became more and more powerful. He became more like a demon, but he still had the powers of the Twice Blessed Child. Too bad he wasn't that child anymore. _

_One day, when I was sixteen, I'd orbed into the house after a demon fight. I'd gotten a scratch from an athame on my chest, but it was a shallow wound. I'd been gone for three days, and I was lucky to have escaped with so little injury. I went to the bathroom, but couldn't find the medicine kit. _

"_Grandpa, have you seen the medicine kit?" I called out into the apartment. There was no response, and I felt nervous. I realized suddenly that the air was absent of the tobacco smell that was grandpa. _

"_No way," I told myself, forcing myself to calm down. To see what had happened. The answering machine. Grandpa had a cell phone, he would have left a message. I went to the answering machine, and played back the messages. One was from a man trying to sell a vacuum cleaner. Another was from grandpa's job, asking when he would email in his work. I had made grandpa work at home after Wyatt killed our family. Finally, I got a useful message:_

"_Christopher Perry Halliwell, this is Dr. Napal speaking, your grandfather wanted me to call you. He has terminal lung cancer, and we've enrolled him into the hospital so we can run some tests. So far we've found that his lungs are very damaged, due to large intake of tobacco. He's in critical condition. We will do everything we can."_

_What did that mean, 'we will do everything he can'? Was grandpa really that ill? Could he be dying? I found another message from Dr. Napal and listened to it:_

"_Christopher, this is Dr. Napal, again. We regret to inform you that your grandfather has died at 2:54 this afternoon. His lungs were overcome by the cancer. I'm sorry for your loss, especially because it was so sudden. My sincere condolences."_

_I turned off the answering machine, sat down on my bed, and started to think, pushing down my sadness. I had to come up with a plan. Grandpa's will. He'd probably left me the house, but that didn't mean anything. Social Services would probably send me to a foster home, and without the crystal circle around the house, I'd be a sitting duck for Wyatt and his demons. I'd have to leave. Live somewhere else. But where? I had no idea where to go or what to do. Magically, no place was left safe from Wyatt except the crypt containing the Hollow, but the guardians would kill me if I went there. Death was something very real. _

_Maybe I could find a shack, something no one used any more, and make it a safe house. Maybe I could _make_ my home. I could use my magic to help me survive. I could make a crystal circle and cast sage to shield the house from Wyatt. Yeah, that could work._

_I got up and went around the house, packing stuff I would need in a large hiking backpack. I put in all the spell ingredients I had along with my binder full of spells I'd invented. I packed three athame's, one for a ceremony, but two more, just in case. I packed three sets of clothes, I couldn't pack more and take up room in the backpack. I packed a toothbrush and a hair brush, as well. Then I put the backpack down and went to the fridge. I ate a decent dinner, and then stuffed whatever food I could fit inside the backpack. Lastly, I went to a drawer in grandpa's room labeled "Emergency Funds". I opened the drawer and took out the white envelope inside it. Grandpa and I had planned, in case Wyatt ever came after him. Somehow I never thought grandpa would die by a disease. It just didn't seem right._

_I put the envelope in my pocket and looked around at the house I once called home. I took in a deep breath, breathing in the scent of my past. I took down the last shield of crystals and stuffed them into my backpack._

_Now I just needed to find a good place to work with. I made up a spell and chanted, _

"_**Let Lady Luck come to me  
**__**So I may travel in safety  
**__**Until I find what I can hone  
**__**Into the place I will call home."**_

_Suddenly I felt a warm, confident, feeling. I knew exactly where I should orb. I orbed and reformed in an old underground place. It was like a demon's cave, except it was empty, and there were four visible exits leading up into the sun. _

"_Crystals, sage. Circle," I said, gesturing with my arm as the crystals and sage formed a shield around my new home. My safe house. I looked up at the grey green stones and felt comforted. I chanted protection spell, just in case._

"_**Spirits of old and new  
**__**Now I come and call to you  
**__**Let no evil come in this place  
**__**Let it be my sacred space."**_

_The grey-green stones glowed gold for a second, and I knew the spell worked. I unpacked everything but my clothes, and then allowed myself to cry. I cried for the death of grandpa, and for the death of the little security I had known with him. I cried for my fate, my brother's choice, and for myself. I cried myself to sleep that night._

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Okay people, remember, THIS IS NOT THE END OF CHRIS'S MEMORIES!!! You will see the rest of his memories in the next chapter. But, I WILL NOT post the next chapter until I get at least three reviews. SO REVIEW IF YOU WANT THE NEXT CHAPTER!!! _  
_


	7. Chris's Memories Part 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-men. I own Rayne, Rick and Liane. **

**I have gotten 984 hits! W00t!! **

**Ok, this is the next chapter of Chris's memories. I'm sorry this is taking so long. After this, there's gonna be one more chapter of Chris's memories, and then we'll come back to the present with Rogue and Logan.**

_Chris's Memories Part 2 _

_I'm seventeen now. Wyatt has openly taken over the world. Magic has been exposed to mortals, and the demons are in charge now, with Wyatt at their head. Mortals are running, hiding, or else trying to prove that they are useful enough to Wyatt for him to keep them alive. Right now, mortals are the minority in the population. _

_There are two people who live with me in the safehouse. Their names are Rick and Liane, both of them are fourteen. Liane is a mortal, and a genius. She had the record of highest IQ, before she was forced into hiding. Rick has hydrokinesis. He can control small amounts of water: turn them into ice, throw condensed water balls at people, things like that. Apparently, good people or beings can find my safehouse. _

_Wyatt keeps trying to find me. If I wasn't so revolted, I could almost see it as a complement. He sends demon after demon to capture me. Whenever I'm not in the safehouse, they find me. Then I help _them_ find purgatory. It's the least I can do. I leave the safehouse a lot. Usually I use my whitelighter side to try to help people, or at least, kill demons, which does help people in the long run. Also, I have to get supplies for the safehouse. People fight in the streets over food or water bottles. Usually I get supplies from demon corpses, but when I can't do that, I steal from thieves. I think of it as karma-come-early. _

_Liane is strange, even for a genius. She talks to me like she's an adult, and I know she's smarter then me, but she always obeys my orders, and listens to my opinions. One thing that's hard is to get supplies for Liane's 'time of the month'. Where is a guy supposed to find things like that in a demon-overrun city? Usually when I need to get her supplies I steal it from the evil witches. At least they're human._

_Liane also is a really good tactition. Before Wyatt became the Source, she read a lot of war books like Beowulf, Cry of the Icemark, and Lord of the Rings. I bring her along with me sometimes when I go demon hunting, just because she can figure out their battle plan. Since Wyatt's takeover, the demons have been a lot more organized. I orb us to a pack of demons, I start vanquishing, and Liane tells me what the demons are going to do next when they start their counterattack. She's almost like a telepath. _

_Rick is a good guy, but not all that strong as far as powers go. His power is the kind that takes precise control, and timing to work. To change water into ice takes two seconds, which is a lot of time when you're in a demon fight. A lot of surviving is using every _millisecond_ to its maximum. A lot can happen in two seconds. People can die, and I refuse to lose another friend. That's what we are. Liane's family was killed in a mass demon attack, and Rick's family was killed off personally by an assassin witch. I told them what happened to me. Not in detail, but enough to explain how my family died._

_We show support for each other, and I trust them. We're almost like a mini family, though it can't ever fill up the hurt or loss in my heart. But it can help my wounds to heal._

_----------------------------------------------- _

_I'm eighteen. Wyatt had taken our house, the Halliwell manor, and had turned it into a monument. He turned the place of our birth into a museum. New technology had been developed. Demonic technology. There were probes that could identify witches and send alerts to Wyatt. There were other probes that, upon encountering a witch, would shoot a fireball at them. _

_I knew that I would have to go to the manor. This was something I would have to see. I needed to know what Wyatt did to the manor, and maybe this could give me the chance to restock on potion supplies._

_Another person had joined my mini family, Rayne. She's thirteen years old, and she's a conjurer. Oh, and she's blind. Rick and Liane are sixteen now. I told them that I was going to spy out the house, and see what I could find out. I needed to find out if Wyatt had tapped into the power of the nexus._

"_You can't just go to the manor!" exclaimed Rayne when I told them that I was going. _

"_I have to," I said, "Wyatt might have tapped into nexus."_

"_Even if he did, you're not strong enough to stop him," said Liane, "He's nearly _killed_ you _twice_! If he has managed to tap into nexus, he'll be near invincible."_

"_And none of us are strong enough to help you," said Rick, "Maybe Rayne, because she can conjure weapons, but she's at risk because of her blindness."_

"_You think I don't know that?" I snapped back, angry. This was personal. This was dangerous. I had to be the one to handle it. _

"_Chris, Wyatt is the Source, and the manor is a perfect place for him to use as a power-base. It doesn't make sense to go up against him," said Liane, "There's a 72 percent chance of your death, if he' set a trap for you. Wyatt knows you, and he knows that you'd go to the manor in a second. You have to outsmart him."_

"_If you die, how will we survive?" said Rayne, staring slightly to my left, "We're too weak. You're the only reason we're alive at all, Chris."_

_I sighed. "Rayne, I have to go. Even if it is a trap, I have to check this out. There's too much risk if I don't know." None of them looked convinced, "I'll come back soon, okay? Don't worry so much."_

"_But, Chris--" said Liane,_

"_No Liane," I interrupted, "This is something I have to do. I'll be back." With that said, I orbed out._

_-------------------------- _

_I was at the manor. I had three potion vials in my back pocket, and vanquishing spells memorized for Lower-Level demons, Clan leaders, some Upper-Level demons, Grimlocks, Harpies, and Darklighters._

_I reformed in the basement, where nexus would hopefully still lie undisturbed. I walked to the center of the basement floor, crouched down, and stroked it with my hand. I got a sense of power under the basement floor. Good, nexus was still safe. _

"_He said you'd come," said a female voice behind me. _

_I stood up and turned around, looking into the brown eyes of a Phoenix assassin witch. They were known for their allegiance to Wyatt. You couldn't vanquish a Phoenix with magic, they would just reform. The witch was beautiful, with light brown skin, chestnut hair, and a tight black outfit surrounding her fit body. By 'he' I knew she meant Wyatt. Rayne and Liane were right. This was a trap for me. _

"_The Source wants me to bring you to him," she said, in a rich voice._

_I didn't say anything. If there was only one witch here to capture me and bring me to Wyatt, she had to be really powerful. I started to orb out. _

"_No you don't," she said, and I felt something drag me down, something I had never experienced before. Suddenly I was forced to reform, which I did, and found that I was on the floor, with the witch standing over me. I kicked at the witch and rolled away as she moved back to avoid the kick._

_I tried to orb out again, but this time I felt a pain as I was again forced to reform. The pain was in my shoulder, and I saw that there was an athame stuck in it. _

"_You're not orbing away from me," said the witch as she jumped towards me, another athame in her hand._

_I jumped to the side, avoiding her attack, and I reached for the handle of the athame in my shoulder, gritted my teeth, and pulled. White fire ran across my arm, but I didn't make a sound of pain, except for drawing in my breath. I felt blood roll down my shoulder, but ignored it. I tucked the bloody athame into my belt as I dodged another attack of the witch's. This time, the witch flipped over once in the air, reaching me in less then a second. She slashed at me with her athame, and scratched my stomach. I gasped, and tried to back up as she released a kick at my face. I couldn't avoid it, and the strength of her kick knocked me to the floor. I pressed my hand against my stomach, and felt wet sticky blood. I let all thoughts go, and went with my instinct. _

_I rolled up from the floor, taking out my athame and lunging at the witch, not bothering to use my powers, which wouldn't do much against her anyway. She kicked the athame out of my hand, and it skidded across the basement. I make a fist and lunged at the witch again. I feinted a punch, and let out a kick. The witch didn't react to my feint, but caught my ankle and twisted it. I head a crack, and gasped in pain as I felt white fire spread along my ankle. I knew in my gut that it was broken. _

_I fell on the ground, landing on top of my other leg. The witch held out her athame, and came at me. I flailed my arm, and somehow managed to punch her in the face. She paused slightly, for less then a second, absorbing that she'd been punched. I tried to stand up, but my leg wouldn't support me, it burned as I stepped on it, and I fell down again, slamming my arm into the floor. _

_Dimly, I realized that I was trapped and couldn't escape. Nevertheless, I tried to crawl far enough away so I could orb safely. I hadn't gone more then two inches when the witch grabbed the back of my shirt and flipped me over onto my back, putting her athame at my throat, and kneeling next to me. _

_I felt my panic rising. The last time I had only managed to escape Wyatt by chance, and I had at least been strong and fit. Now I was beat up, bleeding from my shoulder and stomach, and had a broken ankle. If Wyatt got me now I wouldn't be able to escape. I would never join him, so he would torture and kill me. He would kill me, just like he'd killed our family. Suddenly I had a flashback. I heard mom's voice in my head. 'Never give up,' her voice said. I couldn't panic. I couldn't give up. I had to keep fighting, for Rayne, Liane, and Rick. For my dead family and friends. For mom. For Wyatt, himself. I had to keep fighting. _

_I summoned as much strength as I could into my arm, and swung it at the witch's face. The witch grabbed my wrist before it hit her face and smirked. _

"_You never give up, do you?" the witch said, smiling almost with respect._

"_Until I die," I said._

"_That might happen soon," said the witch, "Unless you plan to join the Source."_

"_Why do you care?" I asked, very aware of my throbbing ankle and the athame at my neck._

_The witch looked confused for a second. "I don't know." she said, before looking back at me, "You fought awful hard. You must really not want to get caught."_

"_What does it matter to you?" I said. This witch didn't make any sense. _

"_Well, the Source kills his family, but lets his brother live, and then hires an assassin to bring him back, but _alive_. I'm trying to figure you out."_

"_Why?" I asked, despite myself. _

"_Because I can't figure him out, and I'm not dumb enough to try." she said, still holding my wrist, "You're strong, but not strong enough to be worth a bother. I just wonder why he wants you so bad."_

"_What are you waiting for?" I said angrily, "Most demons would take me to him right away, but you're not. What are you waiting for? Is this your idea of fun?"_

"_What, do you want to die so fast?" she asked, "Did you ever think that I don't like to send people to their deaths? I'm a witch, not a demon."_

"_You're evil," I said._

"_No, I stay alive," she said._

"_By the blood of the ones you kill," I said, not caring anymore about diplomacy._

"_Beats being dead," said the witch, "You know, if you won't join him, he'll kill you." _

"_Fine. You kill me then, it'll hurt less." I said sarcastically, but also with a touch of honesty. _

"_I won't kill you," she said after a pause, "I won't send you to your death either." she lifted her athame away from my throat, stood up and stepped away from me._

_I lay on the ground, stunned. "Why are you doing this?" I asked, using my sore elbows to raise myself slightly off the ground._

"_You remind me to much of me," she said, "Just go. I won't stop you," she paused, "By the way, if you do ever get caught, you knocked me out by sending a rock against my head with your powers."_

_With that said, she shimmered out. Dazed, I orbed back to the safehouse, reforming lying down on my 'bed', which was really an old sofa Rayne had conjured. _

_Exhausted, injured and bleeding, I immediately fell asleep._

_-------------------- _

_I started to heal. It took a while, but it could have been worse. Rayne was able to conjure all the gauze and bandages she needed. Liane helped a lot too, but Rick was angry._

"_Chris, how could you have done that?" he said, almost shouting after I'd orbed back, "You nearly died. You orbed back with a torn muscle in your elbow, a laceration on your stomach, an ankle broken in two places, a stabbed shoulder muscle, and several cuts and bruises. Your ankle could have gotten infected, and you could have died!" he paused, "You've been like a father to me and Liane, and Rayne too. We can't survive without you. My powers are too slow, Liane's a mortal, and Rayne's blind! What would have happened to us if you'd died?"_

"_You're all strong," I said, "You would have found a way to survive, I trust that."_

"_Still, Chris," said Liane, "Please don't do stuff like that again without taking one of us with you. We know we're not strong, but we're strong enough to help you gain the advantage in a fight."_

"_Guys, leave him alone," said Rayne sternly, "Chris just got beaten the hell out of him. Let him heal. We'll argue later. But Chris," and she turned to my general direction, "We may be weak, but I've got good ears. I can help you scout, if nothing else."_

"_Thanks, Rayne," I said, thankful for her vouching for me, and for her willingness to help. But, I would never put her in danger. She was the most vulnerable, out of all of us, and Wyatt would kill her if he got her, just to hurt me. I would protect my mini family, because I had been unable to protect my own, and then Emily and David after them. I wouldn't let Rayne, Liane, or Rick down._

_I healed._

_------------------------------- _

_I'm twenty now. Rayne has grown strong. She knows where everything in the safehouse is, and walks around like a seeing person. Her powers have improved drastically, and she can conjure things in under half a second now. She's become strong and confident. She's fifteen now, and she actually comes with me to demon fights, and helps out. Her hearing had improved too, so now she has almost a sort of echolocation. She's saved my life a couple of times. He sense of touch has also improved. She could feel a fly land on the shoe, and know exactly where it was and how big it was._

_Liane and Rick are eighteen. Liane's intelligence is still increasing, as she had Rayne conjure books for her on the world of magic and demons. Rick's powers haven't progressed. He's still stubborn, and slightly annoying. He and Liane are 'together'. _

_One time, Rayne and I were going after a Clan of Lower-Level demons, when, just as she had finished up, something strange happened. _

"_Are there any left?" I asked her._

_Rayne closed her sightless eyes and listened. "Nope. All gone." Then, suddenly she paused, "Someone's shimmering in."_

_The next second, someone shimmered in. Rayne's sensitive sense of touch could feel ripples through the air across her skin that let her know when someone was shimmering a second before they came._

_The person who orbed in was familiar. She was the Phoenix witch who had let me go, when I'd first gone to the manor. Wyatt had turned the manor into a museum, actually more like a shrine to himself, though it was dedicated to the Charmed Ones._

_Rayne's hand grasped the hilt of the athame in her right hand. "Chris?" she asked, wondering whether to attack or not to attack. For all she knew, it might have been one of my Underworld contacts. _

"_Defense, only," I said, "It's the Phoenix from the manor."_

_Rayne let out a small gasp, and moved into a defensive position, but didn't attack. I glanced at Rayne proudly._

"_You've trained her well," said the witch._

"_What do you want?" I asked, "Did Wyatt send you?"_

"_No, not this time," said the witch, "This time, I need your help."_

"_My help?" I said, stunned. This witch had nearly killed me, and now she wanted my help? But, she had let me live...she hadn't given me to Wyatt..._

"_Yes," she said, "Wyatt has ordered that every g__rimoire of every witch serving under him be handed over to him. He wants to increase his powers."_

"_So?" I asked._

"_So, I don't want him to get the Phoenix grimoire. It's an old Book, full of spells that have been handed down from the time of the witch trials. I want you to make a fake one."_

"_You want me to invent a Book of spells?" I asked, incredulous._

"_Yes," she said, "I must keep my heritage safe. You have a conjurer friend, and you have the ingenuity needed to make up spells."_

"_Why come to me?" I asked, still distrustful. _

"_Because, my family is dead, by Wyatt's hand. I won't give him my family's magic, and you're the only one who's openly opposed him and survived. I figure, if anyone can help me, it's you."_

"_How do I know I can trust you?" I asked._

"_You don't. Unless you have a truth spell somewhere?" she said, raising her eyebrows. I shook my head. "Uh huh," she said._

"_Look, Christopher, I did you a favor that day, not giving you over to Wyatt. I saved your life at risk to my own. You owe me, and this is your chance to pay up."_

_I sighed, unfortunately, she was right. She had saved my life that day, and she had done it at risk to her own. She wasn't threatening me now, and had no weapons out. That didn't mean much, but it meant she wasn't going to bring me to Wyatt._

"_Rayne?" I asked, "What do you think?" Rayne had good intuition, as I'd found out on many occasions._

"_I think she's telling the truth," she said after a short pause, "There's a mortal truth test I can try, if you want."_

"_Will you let her?" I asked the witch._

"_If it'll make you help me, yes." she said, looking at Rayne, "What does she have to do?"_

"_I need to measure your pulse rate first," said Rayne, stepping closer to the witch's voice, and causing her athame to vanish. She stopped about a foot in front of the witch, and raised her hands towards her chin. _

"_Lower, Rayne, you're at the chin." I said, my body taunt and ready for a fight, just in case._

_Rayne moved her hands lightly until her right hand was at the place where throat and jaw met. She put down her left hand. _

"_Answer the questions," she said, "What's your name?"  
_

"_Bianca," said the witch._

"_What color is your hair?" asked Rayne._

"_Brown," said Bianca._

"_Are you a girl or a boy?" _

_Bianca snorted. "Girl."_

"_What do you want with Chris?"_

"_I want him to make a Book of fake spells so I can preserve my family's heritage."_

_Rayne closed her sightless green eyes, concentrating. "She's telling the truth," she said, taking her hand away from Bianca's neck. _

_Bianca raised an eyebrow. "Thank you," she turned to me, "Now, will you help me?"_

"_You won't turn me over to Wyatt? Or try to kill us?" I asked._

"_No," she said with a sad smile, "I like him just as much as you do Chris."_

"_I'll help you," I said after a pause. I didn't see that I had any other choice, and there's no way she could have fooled Rayne. Her sense of touch couldn't be tricked._

"_Thanks," said Bianca. _

"_Follow us," I said, as I stepped forward and took Rayne's hand, orbing us back to the safehouse._

_------------------------------------ _

"_You brought her back here!" yelled Rick, angrier then I'd ever seen him, "How could you bring the Phoenix back here?"_

"_The Phoenix has a name," said Bianca angrily, "It's Bianca."_

"_I don't care who the hell you are! You nearly killed Chris, did you know that! Then you have the nerve to ask him for his help? What the --"_

"_She also is the only reason I'm still alive," I said loudly, interrupting Rick, "She didn't bring me to Wyatt, and she didn't kill me. I owe her, I'm repaying the debt. That's all. If you have a problem with it, you're gonna have to find a way to deal with it."_

_Rick panted, scowling, anger seeping out of his every pore. Liane walked up to him and put her hand on his shoulder. Rick calmed down slightly, and Liane looked at me._

"_Chris, it's really risky to bring her here. Even if she was telling the truth about what she wants, you can't know what she's going to do afterwards."_

"_Don't you think I know that?" I said, rubbing my eyes in stress. I knew and understood the risks. I also knew that Bianca didn't have a motive for bringing me to Wyatt, and that she was about as likely to betray me as any of my Underworld contacts. I could deal with those odds._

"_So how do I make this grimoire?" I asked, turning to Bianca. _

"_All you have to do is make up one spell." she said, "Your conjurer friend can do the rest. Make up a spell that lets Wyatt think he has more powers, and all his underlings too."_

"_So the spell will just make him and his demons _think_ he has more powers?" I asked, clarifying._

"_Yes," she said._

"_Okay," I said, "Rayne, conjure an old leather bound book. Make it a square foot in length, and on the top, put The Grimoire in green letters. Put a picture of a phoenix in flight under that, and make the book thick. Put lots of poems that seem like spells in the book. Only, put this spell in the front," I took a breath, thought for a moment, and chanted,_

"_**For powers gained within our minds  
**__**Allies throughout space and time  
**__**The power flow through us, through me,  
**__**Through power I find my destiny."**_

_Rayne closed her eyes and held out her hand. A book just like the one I'd dictated to her materialized into her arms. I used my powers to bring the book into my hand, and then gave it to Bianca._

"_Will he fall for it?" I asked. _

"_I hope so," she said, "By doing this, you're saving the magic of the Phoenix.. I owe you now. If you need me, call my name." with that said, she shimmered out._

_She didn't make any sense. She didn't owe me now so why did she say she did? I asked Liane, the genius, who looked at me with surprise._

"_You didn't see it?" she asked, and I shook my head, "She admires you, Chris. I think she really, truly admires you."_

"_Why?" I asked. _

"_Well, she was an awful lot like you..."_

_--------------------------------- _

_I'm still twenty. Bianca and I have grown closer. She kept coming back unexpectedly to help me with demon vanquishes, at first. But, then she just started to come by to talk. And we did talk. I trusted her, and felt comfortable around her. Rayne and Bianca also became friends. Liane was friendly towards her, but Rick was always distant and slightly rude, which annoyed me to no end. I started to realize that I was attracted to Bianca. I couldn't stop looking at her, and I would feel her look at me. She helped me really deal with the death of my family. I'd been pushing my feelings deeper into myself, and she helped to gently help me heal. She was always willing to talk to me or help me. I realized that I started to love her._

_I'm twenty one, and Bianca, Rayne, and I are at a demon vanquish. It's going well. We're fighting a Clan of demons, who had the potential to telepathically uncover our safe house. Rayne was conjuring and throwing athames right and left, never hitting Bianca or I. She was like Daredevil, from the old comic books. I was using me powers to direct demons powers into each other. I'd also discovered that my telekinesis worked inside the body. I could crush a demon's heart with my powers. The only problem was that that took time, and you don't have a lot of time in the middle of a vanquish. So, while I was redirecting energy balls, Bianca was shimmering in and out, stabbing, attacking and killing ruthlessly. Eventually we vanquished the last one, and as his screams died away, we all stood alert._

"_Rayne?" I asked after a minute, "Bianca?" Were we done? Had the battle ended?_

_Bianca's eyes swept around the room, and Rayne stared blankly ahead. "Something doesn't feel right about this." said Bianca, "This vanquish should have been a lot harder. These were telepathic demons."_

"_I agree," said Rayne, "I don't think we got them all."_

"_Do you think it was a trap?" I asked. These demons had been working for Wyatt, after all. _

"_What trap could they set, though?" asked Rayne, but Bianca suddenly looked alarmed._

"_The safe house," she said, turning to me, "It wasn't a trap for us, it was a trap to find our location."_

"_We have to get Rick and Liane," I said, anxiously. Had we been to late? "Quickly," Rayne walked towards me and I grabbed her arm and orbed us out, just ad Bianca shimmered behind us._

_When we reformed at the safe house, the first thing I saw were the blood and bodies. Liane and Rick were lying on the floor, and three demons were standing above them. The demons leered at us, grinning. Suddenly one of them leaped into the air, the other two closely behind him._

"_Levitation spell," said Bianca quickly, "Won't last for more then an hour."_

_I felt a rage consume me. Liane and Rick were dead, I knew it instinctively. I orbed out, reforming on top of the demon. His comrades fired energy balls at me, but I orbed off the demon and reformed on the ground. The demon had been hit by one of his comrade's energy balls, but it hadn't killed him. Either they were stronger then they looked, or the demon had good dodging reflexes. None of that was good._

"_Chris, I can't find them!" shouted Rayne, looking more scared then I'd ever seen her, "I don't know where they are!"_

"_Conjure as many athame's as you can," I called back, thinking quickly, as Bianca started to attack one of the flying demons. I stayed on the ground, sending athame's at the demons. They were fast, they kept dodging the athame's and throwing energy balls. One of them threw an energy ball at Rayne._

"_Duck!" I called, and she did, conjuring more athames as I sent them flying towards the demons. One of the demons got ready to throw another energy ball at Rayne. I ran to her, knocking her to the ground, and pulling her behind the sofa. _

"_Chris, I don't know what's wrong, but I can't feel them on the air," she said as the energy ball hit the sofa, making it rock violently. "I hear them, but there's too much noise. I feel blind." _

_If the situation hadn't been so bad, I would have laughed. She was the only blind demon-hunter I'd ever known, and she moved with a grace that almost fooled you into thinking she could see. Too bad we were facing two Upper Level demons who could fly. Bianca hadn't vanquished hers yet, so they must really be hard to kill._

_The sofa shook again, and a demon shimmered in in front of us. This was one of the flying demons, and even as he shimmered in, he was careful not to touch the ground. Rayne would have been able to feel him in the ground._

_I looked at the demon and clenched my fist, concentrating on his heart. I found it in my powers. I tightened my fist, squeezing his heart. Then I felt a release, and I knew that he was dead, just before his body burst into flame. I felt relieved, but then I heard Bianca scream. Rayne suddenly jumped up, and conjured athames out of her hands, throwing them into the air in a wide sweep. The daggers hit the walls with a clunk, and Rayne smiled happily._

"_I know where he is!" she said, and I smiled, happy for this small victory as I orbed to Bianca. The demon had manage to stick a knife in her stomach. I came up behind the demon and clenched my fist. I crushed his heart, and he too burst into flames. One demon left. Bianca was sweating heavily. _

"_One left," was all she said, before she fell into unconsciousness. _

_I had to get the last demon. _

_Suddenly I heard a voice inside my mind. "Halliwell," I spun around looking at the last demon. _

"_I bring a message from the Source," the demon said._

"_Chris, I can't hear him," I heard Rayne suddenly call. The demon shimmered out, and reformed behind Rayne._

"_This," the voice said inside my head, as the demon pulled out a dagger._

"_Rayne!" I cried, just as the demon stabbed the dagger into her back. Rayne's back arched as she gasped. She never had before screamed when she was hurt, and she didn't scream now. The demon pulled Rayne close to him and kissed her cheek, before pulling the dagger out of her back. He licked the blood on his knife._

_I felt a rage build up in me that I never had before. I hated that sick, demented demon. I clenched my fist, and this time, the demon looked surprised as he burst into flames as I squeezed the life out of him. It had taken three seconds to kill him._

_I orbed to Rayne, running would be slower, and reformed behind her. I pulled her onto my lap._

"_Rayne?" I asked, and her blind eyes somehow knew to look at my face._

"_Chris, I think I'm dying." she said. _

"_No, Rayne, you're not gonna die. I need you to conjure bandages. Conjure them." I said, stroking her hair to comfort her._

"_I can't," she said, her body starting to shake from loss of blood. _

"_You have to." I said, looking around to see if there was anything I could use. There wasn't. The demons had burned all of our supplies before we'd gotten here._

"_No, Chris, the dagger had a spell on it. It took away my powers." she said. God, she was going to die too."I heard Bianca scream. If she got stabbed too you have to save her. Her powers are gone too."_

"_Bianca can't die by magic." I said, "She's strong. I'll find some bandages for her later. Here." I took off my jacket and used my powers to divide it into strips. I started wrapping the strips around her back._

"_It won't work Chris," she said, her skin deathly pale, "I'm going to die." I swallowed, wanting to deny the truth, but knowing that I couldn't. "Tell me about the colors, Chris." she sighed, sounding almost peaceful, not blaming me for anything, "The color of the grass and sky. I still remember from when I could see. Please tell me."_

_I swallowed the tears that threatened to overwhelm me, and I spoke. I told her about green grass and the grace of the alley cat. I told her about the thunder in the sky and the clouds and rain. I talked and told her all I could think of, when suddenly her body stiffened. _

"_I can see," she sighed, delight on her face, before she let out a last sigh, and died. I put Rayne's body gently down on the ground. I orbed to Bianca, who was conscious now, but just barely. _

"_Is she dead?" she asked. I nodded. Bianca looked up at me, "Chris I want you to stab me in the neck with this knife."_

"_What?" I said, she's gone insane. Why did she want me to kill her?_

"_The magic in the knife will let me reform unscathed. It's part of my Phoenix magic."  
__I understood. As a Phoenix, she would reform unharmed if killed by magical means. If I stabbed her she could reform because of the magic in the knife, but if I didn't do anything she would die of blood loss. I picked up the dagger and Bianca closed her eyes. I stabbed looked away and brought the knife down into her neck. I felt a burst under me, and Bianca reformed in back of me. I got up and turned around. _

"_Let's get Rick, Liane, and Rayne, and get out of here." I said. Bianca nodded. _

"_Let's go to where the monument used to be." she said, "He'll never suspect you to be out in the open."_

"_What about you?" I asked. Now that she was alive and safe, I didn't ever want to lose her._

_Bianca gave me a small grin. "He doesn't know about me." she said. I nodded and went over to Rayne's body. I picked her up and looked at Bianca, who was holding the hands of the dead Rick and Liane. We nodded to each other and orbed and shimmered to the monument. No one was there._

_I put Rayne's body down and went to see Liane and Rick. Rick had died from a wound in his chest, probably from an energy ball. Liane had a wound in her stomach that looked like it came from a knife. They had never stood a chance. I saw tear streaks on Liane's cheeks. That meant that Rick had probably died first, probably to protect her. I sighed, biting back tears._

_I went back to Rayne's body and moved her over to the bodies of Rick and Liane. In my mind I looked at all of them, and I was dimly aware of Bianca chanting a cloaking spell. _

_Liane had been a genius. She had been tactical, sure of herself, and caring. She had been afraid of spiders, and loved to learn. I hated to see the look of pain on her face, and her eyes, closed in anguish. She had deserved so much more. _

_Rick had been strong. He had been obnoxious and rude at times. Sometimes he was downright suspicious, but he had been loyal and willing to do what had to be done. He had hated being a liability and had always tried to find ways to improve his powers. He had genuinely cared about Liane and Rayne. He and Liane had loved each other, and were married in every sense, without the certificate. He and Liane had been nineteen._

_I looked at Rayne's peaceful face and remembered her last words. "I can see." At least she had found peace in death. She had been blinded in a demon fight at the age of ten. She'd become so assured of herself. She had been strong and loyal. Until I met Bianca, she was my closest friend. Bianca and I were closer then friends. Rayne was a good warrior, a brave girl, and a trustworthy person. She was a good friend. She had been sixteen. _

_It was my fault they were dead. I stroked the faces of my dead friends, and stood back up. Bianca stood beside me. She hugged me and kissed my hair. _

"_It's not your fault, Chris," she said. I didn't know what to say. It was my fault. _

"_How do we bury them?" asked Bianca._

_I had an idea. I didn't want to bury my friends in the hard ground. I chanted a spell._

"_**Changing seasons changes all,  
Life renews as creation calls.  
Nothing is immune,  
Everything transmutes,  
Take these friends and give them roots." **_

_The bodies of my friends grew upwards, and became trees. They had created new life with their death. It was all I could do for them. _

_It was then I resolved something to myself: I would protect only myself and Bianca. I couldn't let anyone else get hurt because of me._

_------------------------- _

I know it's an evil place to leave the story, but more will come soon, I promise! Tell me what you think of the story! Reviews really help me decide what to do in a fic. I need any and or all reviews possible. And if you're one of the people who have just read this chapter, and are reading this, and won't review... I will find you, and make you sorry. REVIEW!!_  
_


	8. Chris's Memories Part 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. Yeah, yeah, whatever.**

**To the readers of this fic: I'm so sorry it took this long to update. But add a flu-like virus, two ear infections, one on the eardrum itself, and two weeks worth of make-up schoolwork and I think you'll understand why it took me so long to update. About the chapter: I'd hoped to make it the last chapter of Chris's memories. While Chris is a main character in the fic, I don't want the fic to center around only him. Unfortunately, there might be one or maybe even two more chapters worth of his memories before I can get back to Logan and Rogue.**

_Again, Bianca helped me heal. She helped me rise up from within my grief, although I cried only once. She told me there was nothing that I could have done, and eventually I realized that it was true. I had done all I could. No one can control what's Meant To Be. Mom and the Aunts believed that everything always happened for a reason. Maybe it was true. I hoped so. I held onto that thought. It was the only hope I had that maybe there was a greater purpose, or something I could do to redeem myself. _

_Bianca kept her cover. Wyatt still thought she was working for him. She spied on him, and we stopped many of his plans from happening. I moved into an abandoned home. It wasn't much, but it still had food in the fridge, and I had a place to sleep. Bianca and I would always meet at the monument, and I would always glance at the trees of my friends. _

_Then one day, I had a flashback. The dying words of my mom. "Never give up."_

_I realized that I couldn't stop fighting. That afternoon I was thinking hard. I would be able to meet Bianca at our spot, as we had started to call the monument. We had confessed our love to each other during a demon battle where I almost died. _

_I was thinking, If only Wyatt hadn't turned evil. Then I realized, what if he didn't? Time travel was a power, and there were spells that could send you through time. What if I went back in time, and stopped Wyatt from turning evil? It might work. I orbed to our spot at the appointed time, and filled Bianca in on my plan._

"_Yeah, but the grimoire doesn't have a time-travel spell," she said, thinking logically, "It's a good plan, but we don't have the means to do it."_

_I thought for a minute. I knew a Book that had a time-travel spell. "The Book of Shadows," I said quietly._

"_What?" said Bianca, "_The_ Book of Shadows? There's no way we'll be able to get it, Chris. Wyatt nearly always has it with him, or close to him, or under guard by a horde of demons."_

"_I know, I know," I said, "But maybe there's a chance we can get it." Bianca looked unsure. I tried to explain, "Look, Bianca, if we can get to the spell, we can stop Wyatt from turning evil. We can stop the deaths of hundreds, if not thousands of Innocents. People won't have died for nothing. If we can turn him good, or stop him from turning evil, we save everything that we've lost."_

_Bianca sighed, "But, Chris, how are we gonna get the spell?"_

"_The manor?" I asked._

"_No, just a hologram of it is kept there. Wyatt doesn't trust all the people who tour the manor." she said, dismissing my idea with a shake of her head._

"_But," I thought quickly, and an idea sparked in my head, "Maybe that's the key."_

"_What?" said Bianca._

"_What if we made a spell to summon the real Book to the hologram of the fake one? I could find the time travel spell, and we could go back in time." I said, becoming surer of the idea. _

"_No," said Bianca, "How are we gonna get past the probes? Will we even have enough time to find the spell? When would you go back to?" _

_I started to interrupt her, but she stopped me, "No, Chris, if anyone goes, it has to be you. I have to keep my cover here. But if you could go, who would you be? How would you be able to stop Wyatt?"_

_I sighed, thinking. "Dealing with the probes isn't a problem. I can just send them to look at something else. The Book... I think we would have enough time if I could find the spell quickly. I think I would have to go back to before I was born, because I remember something bad happening when I was very young."_

_I paused, thinking, "I'll go back during the Titan Battle. They nearly died then, and all of the Elders were eradicated. I'll change that first. If I can make dad an Elder, then mom and the aunts would need a new whitelighter... I would become their whitelighter. I'll be with my family, and I'll keep a close eye on Wyatt. I'll find out what turns him, and I'll stop it."_

"_But Chris," said Bianca softly, "What if you can't stop him from turning? What if you have to kill him, while he's still young?"_

_I looked into the eyes of my love and spoke with conviction, "I'll do it if it comes to that." _

_Bianca nodded, "Then let's make up a spell, and get working on the plans."_

_----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_I'm twenty-two. It took Bianca and I nearly six months to come up with a near-foolproof plan. We met again in our spot. But I had a surprise for her. Bianca and I had loved each other for nearly three years. I felt connected to her, like we were soul mates. _

_After we had gone through another run-through of the plan, I took a small package out of my pocket, and opened it, revealing the diamond ring inside. I slipped in on her finger._

"_Marry me," I said, looking up into her beautiful chocolate eyes._

"_You're asking now?" she asked, almost laughing._

"_Mm-hm," I said, smiling at her surprise._

"_Here?" she asked, looking around._

"_It's still our spot Bianca, no matter what he's done to it." I said, glancing at the trees of my friends. I turned back to Bianca, "Marry me."_

_She smiled, "On one condition. You come back to me, safely."_

"_Have I ever let you down before?" I said. We kissed, and I felt my guard lower as I enjoyed this closeness with her._

_Suddenly I heard a buzzing. "What's that?" asked Bianca, looking around as we quickly pulled out of the kiss. A probe flew in front of us, and started to scan Bianca. "Chris," She said, sounding worried._

_I used my power to fling the probe into a broken column. It shattered, I turned quickly back to Bianca. "Are you okay?" I asked, looking her over for hidden injuries. _

"_Yeah," she said, shaking her head, but she sounded worried, "I don't think it had time to transmit."_

_I felt anger build up inside me. Why did this have to happen today of all days? "Aggh!" I growled in frustration, standing up, feeling the need to do _something

"_I can not believe he's sending probes after us now." I shook my head, anger nearly overwhelming me, "I'm gonna kill that son of a bitch."_

"_No," Bianca stood up, "No, you're not. You're gonna stick to the plan."_

"_But, he knows," I said, my worry entering my voice. What if it didn't work? What if he killed me? What if he killed Bianca?_

"_If he knew, he wouldn't have sent the probe," said Bianca logically, "You have to go back, Chris. It's the only way to stop them. It's the only way to change all this."_

_I nodded, and Bianca smiled supportively. We held hands, and Bianca shimmered us to the manor._

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_We shimmered in just as the tour guide finished saying, "__Now, as we pass through the foyer, note the family portraits hanging on the walls." Two probes came at Bianca and me, but I flicked my hand and sent them to mannequins with my power, which they started to scan._

"_Nicely done," whispered Bianca, as we walked with interlocked arms._

_The tour guide continued, "Around here you'll notice just a few of the many mythological creatures the legendary sisters transformed into in their demon fighting hayday. Actually, the Charmed Ones were responsible for well over a thousand demon vanquishes before they were finally vanquished themselves." We were below the steps that lead to the attic now. I remembered it from before. "Now, the time is twenty-five years ago. Imagine yourselves standing here on this floor when the Charmed Ones were reborn."_

_A hologram of mom, dad, Phoebe, and Paige, came out at us. I practiced calling my family by their names, as I would have to when I got to the past. Piper, Leo, Phoebe, Paige. It felt strange, even in my head. I ignored the hologram, and came out of my thoughts only when the tour guide started talking again._

"_Scares them every time. Okay, let's head over to the kitchen where many of the sisters' classic potions were brewed. Some of which are available from purchase in the gift shop on the way out." we moved into the kitchen. I remembered eating cookies here. I almost wanted to stroke the table, "Of course, the attic was the preferred spot for potion making, principally because that's where they kept the famed Book of Shadows. Which is where we're headed next. A little background on the manor itself, it was actually..."_

_The tour guide and the rest of the tour group walked out of the kitchen. Bianca and I stayed, looking at the table, waiting._

_A demon shimmered in behind us, "Hey, you two, move along," he said threateningly._

"_Wait for it," said Bianca quietly to me as she conjured an athame._

"_Are you deaf?" said th demon, getting closer, "I said --" he didn't get to finish that sentence, because Bianca stabbed him. I saw the cold look of ruthlessness in her eyes, and was reminded of who she was before. An assassin, a servant of Wyatt._

_Bianca held open the basement door, "Come on," she said urgently._

_I walked into the basement with her and I sat on the steps as Bianca looked around once more, and allowed her athame to vanish. "We should be safe here," she said, turning back to me, "What's wrong?" she asked. She understood me like no one else._

"_Nothing," I said automatically, but then revised my answer, "It's just sometimes I forget who you really are."_

_Bianca walked over to me and I stood up. She held my hands. "Hey, You mean who I used to be, Chris. Before I met you."_

"_So what do we do now?" I asked, looking around the basement._

"_We say goodbye," said Bianca. She took off her shirt, and we joined together in farewell._

_------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_Some hours later, the museum had closed, and Bianca and I had made our way up to the attic. I started to feel unsure. "What do I tell them?" I asked. Would I be able to keep my cover._

"_Don't tell them anything." said Bianca, "Just stick to your over story. The less they know about the Future, the better."_

_"But, what if they find out who I really am?" I asked._

"_They won't. Not as long as you can pass yourself off as their whitelighter."__ she said._

"_And you're _sure_ I won't lose my powers when I get back?" I asked._

"_Not with this spell, that's why we need it." said Bianca, turning to me, "Look, just remember, protect baby Wyatt and you protect the Charmed Ones. Keep them alive for our future."_

"_Great," I said sarcastically, "No pressure there."_

"_Chris, you know you're the only one who can do this. You're the only one who can save us." she said._

"_If I make it back," I said. Ever the pessimist._

"_Baby, you have to make it back. If you wanna marry me." said Bianca as she pulled me into a kiss. I felt slightly dazed. _

"_You really know how to motivate a guy, you know that?" I said, half-joking, as we walked over to the hologram of the Book of Shadows. I stood in front of it, looking at the hologram. Any last-minute thoughts or worries disappeared. I had to do this._

"_You sure you can summon the real Book?" asked Bianca nervously._

"_Yeah," I said._

"_Away from him?" she asked._

"_Yeah," I said, "But we won't have much time once it gets here. His demons will be all over us." _

"_I won't need much time," said Bianca confidently, "Just enough to send you back to them." Bianca took out a piece of chalk and started to draw a triquetra on the wall._

"_Hurry," I said, "Before he finds us." It was a small chance, but Wyatt might be able to sense us here._

_She finished the symbol. I didn't want this to be it. What if I never saw her again? "I don't want to go," I said, walking up to her, "I don't want to leave you." I loved her so much._

"_Here," she said, and she took off her engagement ring, and gave it back to me, "This will remind you why you're doing this, what's waiting for you here." I looked down into her chocolate eyes and was filled with a new resolve. We hugged, and I felt better in her arms. 'Never give up,' my mom had said, and I wouldn't._

_We broke apart, "Just make sure you take care of the guards, okay?" I said, "Then get out of here. Because if he finds you, if he knows you betrayed him, he'll kill you."_

"_Don't worry," said Bianca, smiling slightly "I can take care of myself." _

_We walked over to the hologram of the Book, and I took a folded piece of paper out of my pocket. I unfolded the paper and read the spell on it._

"_**I call upon the Ancient Power**__**  
To help us in this darkest hour**__**  
Let the Book return to this place**__**  
Claim refuge in its rightful space."**__**  
**_

_The Book dropped suddenly onto the stand in front of me. "It worked," I said in relief._

"_The spell, find the spell," said Bianca, as I opened the Book and started flicking through the pages, looking for the time-travel spell. I found the page quickly, and started to chant the spell._

"_**Hear these words, hear the rhyme**__**  
Heed the hope within my mind**__**  
Send me back to where I'll find**__**  
What I wish in place and time."**__**  
**_

_The triquetra glowed blue and expanded, colors spinning inside it. The spell had worked; it had opened the portal. I walked up to the portal and stopped a few feet in front of it. I turned back to Bianca, and I promised to myself that I would save her._

_A demon shimmered in behind her, and grabbed her. "Bianca!" I called, starting to go forward to her. Bianca fought the demon off. "Go! Go!" she told me. I nodded. I endangered her by being here. I turned back to the portal and walked through it._

_------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ _

_I landed in P3. Somehow the portal must not have been completely accurate. I walked over to a mirror, and changed out of my dark clothes into a red shirt, khaki jacket, sunglasses, and jeans, by waving my hand. I'd always liked that the whitelighter glamor power worked on clothes. I didn't want my fam-- the sisters, thinking I was a demon based on my attire. I reached into my pockets, taking the potions I had packed before going out. If the portal had taken me to the right place, I should have arrived during the Titan Battle. I orbed to the attic._

_I reformed, realizing that Meta, the female Titan, had already attacked. Phoebe was right in front of me, lying on the ground. _

"_Don't look into her eyes!" I shouted, shielding Phoebe's face with once hand, as I started throwing potions at the Titan. She had eyes that could turn a human into stone. I threw potion after potion, and eventually the Titan spun out. I took off my sunglasses and helped Phoebe up._

"_Are you alright?" I asked, but Phoebe ignored me, looking at Paige, who was now made of stone._

"_Oh my god, Paige," she said, walking over to Paige's stone figure, looking worried._

"_Don't worry, she's alright," I said Phoebe gave me a look that could melt ice. I continued, "Well, I mean, she's not completely alright, obviously, but she's not dead." I'd researched this with Bianca. Paige would just be paralyzed._

"_Are you sure she's not?" asked Phoebe. Not dead, she meant. I was just relieved that she and Paige weren't dead, although I wouldn't tell her that._

"_Frankly, you see this a lot. Museums, universities, town centers..." I walked over to stone-Paige, "Most of those statues, not really statues. They're people like your sister here who've been, uh, turned into stone." I almost laughed as I said the last part. Even now it was strange to see Phoebe look at me as she would look at a stranger. It was ironic that when I came back to save my family, one of my aunts got turned into stone._

"_Who are you?" asked Phoebe. Bianca and I had thought about this. My middle name would become my surname. As long as I left out the Halliwell in my name, I would have a reliable cover._

"_Chris," I said, "Chris Perry. I'm from the future." I looked intently at Phoebe for her reaction. She looked disbelieving, annoyed, and frustrated. With a touch of mistrust thrown in. Great. Just then mo- Piper walked in. _

"_Oh my god, tell me that's just a really good likeness of Paige." she said anxiously to Phoebe._

"_No," said Phoebe leaning on the stone and rubbing the shoulders and head, "It's Paige." Piper walked further into the room and stood next to Phoebe._

"_Titan turned her into stone," I said, feeling Piper would want an explanation._

"_Who-who are you?" asked Piper, stuttering slightly in stress. The irony of the situation was incredible._

"_That's Chris," said Phoebe, "He's from the future." Piper gave me a mistrustful and questioning look._

"_Yeah, but just like twenty years or so." I said. _

"_Uh huh," said Piper to me. She turned to Phoebe, "Friend or foe?"_

"_Not sure yet," said Phoebe as she and Piper walked slightly away from Paige._

"_What do you mean?" I asked. I had to gain their trust, "I saved Paige, didn't I?"_

"_Oh, you call that saving, do you?" demanded Phoebe._

_I had to make it sound like I was doing them a favor. "Hey, I'm the one who put my life on the line here. I didn't have to drop everything I was doing to orb here and save her butt --"_

"_You orb?" asked Piper, almost laughing, but not quite, "You're a whitelighter?"_

_I took a breath to compose myself. I had to keep control and play the game. I was twisting the truth, but only about Paige's death. Everything else I was saying was true. "__Look, where I come from, history shows Paige didn't get turned into stone on this day... she died. And with her death the power of three died too, allowing Titans to rule and create a world you don't wanna see, trust me. I'm hear to alter history. To help you save the future."_

"_Who sent you?" asked Phoebe, after a short pause._

"_I can't answer that," I said. I couldn't reveal that I'd come for personal reasons, or that I hadn't been sent._

_"Why not?" asked Phoebe. _

"_Because anything I tell you could risk changing the future in ways we don't want." I said, thinking inwardly of Bianca._

"_Who's we?" asked Piper. Inwardly I cringed; I shouldn't have said that. I changed the subject._

"_All I gotta say is, is that if I didn't get here when I did, Paige would have been the third whitelighter victim." I said._

"_Wait, third?" asked Phoebe, "I thought only one was missing."_

"_Not anymore," I said._

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_It's later. By this time the Titans have killed off most of the Elders. Piper sent me Up There to see Leo and to bring him back. There's something else I have to do though, something more important. I see Leo kneeling next to the body of an Elder._

"_Leo." I say, waiting for him. Leo got up and walked over to me furiously. He grabbed me and pushed me into a column. _

"_Why didn't you tell me? Why did you let this happen?" he demanded._

"_Easy, easy," I said, trying to calm him down._

"_Why?!" he yelled, shaking me._

"_Because this had to happen!" I said loudly, and Leo regained control, "This had to happen so you could do what had to be done."_

_Leo let go of me and walked a few steps away, still full of tension. "What are you talking about?" he said, "They're all dead. Gone."_

_I stepped away from the column, taking in a breath. "No," I said, walking around Leo, "Not all of them. Some of the Elders escaped back to Earth, but it won't be long before the Titans hunt them down too. But you can still stop them. You can still defeat the Titans."_

"_How?" asked Leo._

"_I think you know how," I said. Leo had to infuse to essence of the gods within the sisters._

"_It's too dangerous," said Leo, ever the model whitelighter, "The Elders forbid it."_

"_True," I said, "But then again, the Elders aren't around to stop you now, are they?" I saw comprehension dawn on Leo's face. "That's right, Leo. This is why they had to die, so you could do something they'd never do. To save the future for your family. For your son."_

_Inside, I hurt, saying that. What had gone wrong with Leo? How had he ended up hating me? It didn't matter. What mattered was that I did what had to be done. I felt the deaths of the Elders fall on my shoulders. I pushed them aside, and focused on what I had to do._

"_This is crazy," said Leo._

"_Maybe, but it's our only chance," I said, "Like it or not, you've been put in this situation for a reason, Leo. We both have."_

"_Says you," scoffed Leo, "How do I know you're not trying to manipulate this situation for your own future? Just the way you've manipulated everything else."_

_That struck close to home, but I hid the pain it caused. "You don't," I said, facing Leo head on, "But what choice do you have? There's certainly no future unless you do something."_

"_I don't know," said Leo, looking at me with mistrust, "Even if I were to believe you, even if I were willing, I couldn't. I'm no Elder."_

"_Well, you'd better start acting like one." I said. Leo nodded, and I orbed back to the sisters._

_I reformed in the manor's living room. I felt strange to be in my childhood home, yet not a part of it. I was brought back to the present by Piper's angry question._

"_Where's Leo?" she demanded._

"_He's safe. For now." I said, then noticed that Paige was freed from her stone prison, "Paige, hi."_

"_Hi," she said back, with one of her quirky smiles that I'd missed so much._

"_Forget that," said Piper, "What do you mean, 'for now?'"_

"_What is this about us supposedly battling the Titans?" asked Phoebe._

"_You're about to find out," I said, happy that at least one part of my plan was going right._

"_What's that supposed to mean?" asked Paige._

_Suddenly a tornado of lights swirled around the sisters, creating a small breeze that ran throughout the room. The light cleared, showing that the sisters were now wearing outfits like those in Ancient Greece. Phoebe also had a mane of long blond hair, and Paige was holding a trident. All of the sisters had different hairstyles and different outfits._

"_That's what that means," I said, relishing this small success._

"_What happened?" asked Paige, "What are we?"_

"_You're gods." I said, unable to keep a small smile from my face._

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_The battle has ended. Phoebe, Piper, and Paige beat the Titans. They beat them, not just imprisoned them like the Greeks did. Leo became an Elder, and helped to reorganize things Up There. Too bad that while that happened I was lying unconscious due to Piper's loss of temper. I was sitting outside on the front porch when Leo orbed in in front of me, now in his Elder's robes. I cut to the chase._

"_So, did the Elders decide what to do with me yet?" I asked, knowing that what I'd done was, in the Elder's eyes, manipulative and wrong. Not evil, but wrong, and worth more then a slap on the wrist._

"_Well, you've been the subject of heated discussion," said Leo, and he said it in such a way that I was sure it didn't bode well for me, "One thing we agreed upon is you can't return to the Future."_

_Good, that was all a part of my plan; I had to stay here to save Wyatt, after all. Time to lie. "I figured as much. The timeline's changed, I don't even know what I go back to." There was an uncomfortable pause. "So what did they decide?" I asked._

"_The Elders voted..." Leo paused, and I held my breath, "To make you the Charmed Ones new whitelighter."_

"_They did?" I asked, feigning disbelief, but happy inside. I'd hoped that this might happen. Things were going according to plan. Now, for the next step..._

"_As a reward for helping defeat the Titans," Leo was saying, "But then, somehow I figured you knew that." Leo paused, but I said nothing. "You know, I can't stop thinking about what Piper said and wondering myself... if this wasn't part of your plan all along." said Leo. There was another pause. "Take care of them, Chris. Remember, I'll be watching over you."_

_The way Leo said the last part, it was almost a threat, and I took it as one. Leo started to orb out. I waited until his orbs were halfway up into the sky, and then I waved my hand, using my power to scatter Leo's orbs. I sent the orbs to Freya and Mist in Valhalla. They knew what to do._

_I stood up and looked around casually. There were no witnesses. I walked calmly into the house, and used my telekinesis to shut the door behind me._

_------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ _

_It's one month later. I'm standing in front of the Book of Shadows, a pen in my mouth and a notepad in my hand. I flicked the pages of the Book with my power, looking for more demons to vanquish. The more demons I vanquished, the more likely I found the one that turned Wyatt evil and got rid of it for good. I passed over several demons, when I came to the page of the Trok demon. The Trok demon was dangerous. Very dangerous. Could it be the one? Either way, he was going to be vanquished. I walked closer to the Book and copied down the vanquishing spell. Suddenly a swirling blue-green portal opened in the middle of the attic, and Mist stepped out._

_Mist was a Valkyrie, second in command to Freya in Valhalla, the home of fallen warriors. She had blond hair and tanned, well muscled skin. As she stepped through the portal, she touched the green stone all Valkyries wore around their neck, and the portal closed. She wore a leather skirt and top that showed her belly. She was smart, beautiful, and lethal. And she wasn't supposed to be here._

"_Hey, are you out of your mind?" I asked, "What are you doing here?"_

"_Freya sent me. She wants to know what's taking so long." Mist sounded like she was wondering why as well._

"_Freya?" I said, walking over to Mist, "You know for a mythical character, she sure does worry a lot."_

"_She's not the only one who's worried," said Mist impatiently, angry at my light joke, "He's an Elder, Chris. How much longer do you really expect us to keep him?"_

"_Don't tell me he's complaining," I said, running my hand through my hair._

"_Yes, a lot, actually." said Mist. She sounded annoyed._

"_I don't believe it," I said, my stress rising up another notch, "Banish the guy to an island filled with beautiful women," I gestured to Mist, "And he still complains. I can't win."_

"_How much longer?" asked Mist, refusing to be diverted._

"_Until I'm ready," I said impatiently, "Look, I'm sorry, but I haven't finished what I came here to do yet. And I need Leo out of the way until I can. More importantly, the sisters can't find him before I'm ready or else--"_

"_I know," Mist cut me off, "We all understand the risks." She sounded as though she thought I was one of those risks._

"_I'd never hurt you, Mist," I said, stepping closer to her, "You know that."_

"_You would if you had to," said Mist, shrugging slightly, "I know that too."_

_From downstairs I heard Piper's voice, "Chris, are you up there?"_

"_You'd better go," I told Mist, but she leaned forward. We kissed, and even though I enjoyed the kiss, I felt like I was betraying Bianca. I pulled out of the kiss._

"_Please," said Mist, as she touched her necklace, reopening the portal, "Hurry." She walked into the swirling portal, and it closed behind her._

_Piper came up the stairs carrying a laundry basket with a large smile on her face. "Hey, do you have any laundry?" she asked chipperly. "Ahh," I stalled. I couldn't stop thinking about Bianca. I shouldn't have kissed Mist. It was the right thing to do if I wanted to get closer to the Valkyries, but I felt guilty. I felt like a traitor. Maybe I was. I ran my hand through my hair. _

"_No. No, I'm good, thanks." I changed my clothes by changing my glamor. "I'm gonna get your sisters though. You have another demon to vanquish," I said, remembering the Trok._

"_Okiey-dokie," said Piper with a large smile, as she walked back downstairs._

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_The vanquish went badly. Piper was too chipper, and blew off one of the Trok's heads. Phoebe managed to vanquish the Trok with the spell from the Book, but Paige's shoulder got a shallow cut. It wasn't a deep cut, but it was big. Paige came to me for Healing, and I had to tell them that I couldn't Heal._

"_What kind of whitelighter can't Heal?" demanded Paige as she sat down on a sofa in the living room._

"_For the record, you can't Heal either," I said feeling insulted. I'd never had anyone teach me how to Heal, or tell me what it was that triggered it as a power._

"_I'm half-whitelighter," said Paige by way of excuse. It would have been a good excuse to give a full whitelighter, but I was a half-whitelighter too. Too bad they couldn't know that. "How come you didn't tell us about this before we hired you?" she asked._

"_Because you didn't hire me. I was assigned by the Elders." I felt annoyed. It was too easy to confuse this Paige with the Aunt Paige of my Future. She wouldn't ever have implied that being a whitelighter was being hired help. I was more then just a stupid rule-obsessed whitelighter; I'd come back to save the Future. _

_Phoebe walked in carrying a tube of cream. "Any other little surprises you'd like to share with us?" she asked._

_Yes! "No," I lied, keeping my voice impassive. I'd only been here a month and it was so hard not to blurt everything out. Phoebe sat down behind Paige and gave me a look. "Look, I haven't been a whitelighter very long, okay? And Healing," I sat down on the arm of a sofa, "It's big, and it takes a little while to learn how to do."_

_Phoebe started to dab some cream on Paige's shoulder. "Great," said Phoebe sarcastically, "Student-lighter." Why did they blame this on me? Why didn't they find out the trigger of a mysterious power, use it on their dead aunt, and then get back to me and tell me how easy it was? _

"_Okay, you could've told us about this like, I don't know, a month ago." said Paige, obviously annoyed. But what could I say?_

"_Well, I know one thing for sure, we're gonna stop all this demon fighting for a while." said Phoebe with a slight sigh in her voice._

"_Wait, why?" I asked. They couldn't stop hunting demons. When I'd still been in the Future, Bianca and I had agreed that it was most likely a demon who turned Wyatt evil. We **couldn't** stop hunting demons._

"_Can somebody please fold the towels in the dryer when it's done?" called Piper's voice._

"_That's why," said Phoebe._

_Piper walked in carrying Wyatt on one arm and her purse on the other. "__I put a casserole in the oven, you can check it in about an hour or so. I will be at the club if you need me. Have fun!" She said it all in one breath and ended with a large smile. Her cheeks must be hurting her, she was smiling so much lately. Oh well, it was all part of the plan._

_Piper walked out of the room, and Phoebe focused on Paige's wound again. "Oh my god, she's so sad," said Phoebe._

"_Sad?" asked Paige, wincing slightly, "Where are you getting sad from?"_

_Who cared about that? What mattered were the demons. "How about this. Three more demons, then we can talk about taking a little break."_

"_What, do you have a quota or something?" asked Paige impatiently._

"_Look, I've already told you this before," I said, my frustration breaking through, "I know from Future knowledge that a demon is gonna come after Wyatt. These are all just preempted strikes."_

"_Okay, look, Chris, we like you a lot," said Phoebe impatiently, "But we have been doing this a lot longer than you have. Trust me, you have to pace yourself and you gotta let us have a life." Phoebe looked at her watch. "Ooh, speaking of which, I have to go get ready for my lunch date."_

_Phoebe stood up as Paige said, "Oh, I didn't know the boss was back in town."_

"_No, it's not with Jason, it's with Chad, the DJ, who I'm not really interested in." said Phoebe. I was stunned. How could they care about a lunch date when their nephew was in danger?_

"_Two demons," I said, "How about that? Two."_

"_No, Chris!" exclaimed Phoebe, "And especially not until we figure out what's wrong with Piper, and more importantly Pipers powers."_

"_I swear, I think Leo did something to her before he left," said Paige._

"_You know what?" asked Phoebe, "I think it's time we orb him down him and ask him."_

_Stupid, stupid Leo. He always ruined everything. "I don't think that's possible," I said._

"_Well, then, make it possible." said Phoebe angrily, getting ready to rant, "Look, even if he doesn't care about Piper as his wife, as an Elder, he at the very least should care about what happened to her powers." _

"_I can't," I said, mentally willing them to drop it. Please, just let it go._

"_Yeah, you can," said Paige, and she and Phoebe instinctively shifted their bodies so they ganged up on me, "You just go Up There and tell him to get his butt down here."_

"_That's not why I can't," I said, realizing that I was going to have to tell them about Leo, and hating it, "Look, I didn't want to tell you this because I didn't wanna worry you two but... Leo's missing." Damn this situation._

"_What?" asked Phoebe in disbelief._

"_Missing?" asked Paige, "How long?"_

"_Since the last time you saw him," I said, "Anyway, the Elders think he's been kidnapped."_

"_By whom?" asked Phoebe. By me, I thought. And I didn't even feel guilty._

**A/N: READ THIS!!! This chapter got 71 hits, and I only got one review. This is bad. I need reviews, people. They help me focus and write better. So, thank you Stoneage Woman for actually being a loyal reviewer. The next chapter should be up tomorrow or the day after. But if you don't give me at least three reviews, you won't get another chapter. REVIEW!! **


	9. Chris's Memories Part 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-men. Duh. If I owned it, I'd be a millionaire. **

**Ok, here's the deal: First, to all you people reading this, give yourselves a pat on the back because this story now has 1356 hits!! Yay! I think there'll be one more chapter of Chris's memories, but I can't be sure. I also might not be able to update for a little while, as the computer is needed for homework by my mom. Enjoy the story! **

Chris's Memories Part IV 

_It's later. Piper came home from the club. Paige said she would work on a memory spell to bring Piper back to normal. Part of me hoped it wouldn't work. It'd be a lot easier to do what I had to do if I didn't have Piper looking over my shoulder along with everyone else. _

"_Piper's home!" I called as I walked over to Piper, who thrust a baby bassinet in my hands._

"_Can you put her in the playpen Chris? Thank you." she said cheerfully as she walked into the living room with a baby in either hand._

_Paige came down the stairs. "Hey, who's that?" she asked, gesturing to the baby in my arms. _

"_Ask her," I said nodding towards Piper as I walked into the conservatory and put the baby in the playpen by the windows. _

_Piper and Paige walked into the conservatory, Paige holding a piece of paper, Piper holding a baby. "__Look, Wyatt, look who's here. Another friend for you to play with." said Piper as she put the baby in the playpen. I walked over to Paige._

"_Is that the memory spell?" I asked, looking at Piper with growing alarm. She was acting obsessed with babies. The kick-ass witch she was seemed to be gone. She needed to get back in shape or I'd be stuck with the power of two. And a doomed Future._

"_Yeah," said Paige._

_I looked at Piper again, who put another baby in the playpen, saying, "And she can stay as long as she likes." _

"_Cast it." I told Paige. She chanted:_

"_**Powers and emotions tide**__**  
A witches heart is where it lies  
**__**Help her through her agony  
**__**Bless her with her memory."**_

_A white mist rose out of Piper. She stood up straight, and turned around to look at me and Paige. "Piper?" asked Paige, "Are you okay?"_

"_I'm sorry, do I know you?" asked Piper with an innocent look on her face. If this was a joke, it was a very bad one._

_Paige laughed humorlessly, "Very funny," she said._

_Piper looked at Wyatt, and turned back to us. "Aww, cute." she said, "Yours?" she asked Paige._

"_No," said Paige, surprised, "Yours." How could Piper have forgotten Wyatt? It must have been the spell. Why was everything going wrong? I hoped there were no other side effects._

"_Mine? What do you mean?" asked Piper in astonishment, before her face fell, "Wait, who am I? What am I doing here?"_

"_Great, Paige," I said angrily, so much for my hope,"You didn't restore her memory, you erased it." I snatched the spell out of her hand._

"_That's impossible," said Paige firmly, "It's a good spell, I know it." she paused, "Unless it interacted badly with Leo's magic," she said slowly._

_I was nodding. I understood what had happened, now I had to find a way to fix it. I heard an explosion behind me, and I jumped, startled. Piper whirled around._

"_What happened?" she asked, scared, "How did that happen?" She must have used her powers, but she forgot she had them._

_Paige and I stepped closer to Piper. "Uh, it's okay," said Paige, "You're gonna be okay."_

_All we had to do was make sure Piper didn't blow anything up. "Just don't point at anything, okay?" I said, "Just keep your hands down," I said, grabbing her wrists and pulling her arms to her sides, "Like this." I let go of her._

_Piper's entire body tensed when I had grabbed her, and I felt hurt. I knew it was completely irrational, but she was my mom-to-be, and remembering the relationship I had with my mom, and seeing Piper tense when I touched her... It was like having mom tell me she didn't recognize me. I mean, she didn't, but Piper at least semi-trusted me and knew my name. But now she looked scared of me. Of her son._

"_Can somebody please tell me what is going on?" she asked, glancing quickly from me to Paige._

"_We're gonna tell you that just as soon as we know ourselves," said Paige, who grabbed Piper's shoulders and directed her into the living room, sitting her down on the couch. I heard Paige say something else, but I didn't bother trying to listen. I was still trying to get over that my aunt erased my mother's memory while I banished my father to an island. If it all wasn't happening to me, it'd be funny._

_Paige walked back inside. "Oh my goodness." said Paige, looking flustered, "Okay, don't freak out, because magic got us into this and magic'll get us out." She seemed like she was trying to convince herself just as much, if not more then, me._

_Wyatt let out a loud cry and Paige turned to him. I was still looking at Paige, waiting for her to continue talking. "Did you see that?" she asked, changing the subject._

"_See what?" I asked, turning to Wyatt who was sucking on a pacifier. _

"_Wyatt," said Paige, sounding like it was important, "He orbed his pacifier."_

"_What?" I asked. How was this important? This wasn't going to help Piper._

"_I think I know how to find Leo," said Paige, walking towards Wyatt._

"_Leo?" I asked, amazed at how quickly this conversation went in the wrong direction, "Will you please forget about Leo?"_

_I heard Phoebe walk into the living room and talk excitedly to Piper. I went into the room to tell Phoebe about the memory spell._

"_Uh, Phoebe --"_

"_Just a sec," Phoebe said to me, not even looking at me, before talking again to Piper who was looking more and more alarmed. "I think that's what I am now. An empath. I am an empath. That's my new power. Or at least an advancement of my premonition power, I don't know."_

_I interrupted Phoebe before she could keep talking, "Neither does she, I'm afraid," I said, while Phoebe looked at me with confusion, "Know, that is, anything." I pointed out towards the conservatory, "Paige erased her memory."_

"_Can you blow things up too?" asked Piper._

_Phoebe laughed, and the sound made the room seem degrees colder. "Paige!" she yelled as she marched into the conservatory, with me following behind. Paige was sitting at a desk with Wyatt on her lap, scrying. "What did you do to our sister?" Phoebe demanded, but then she dropped her tough stance and put her hand on Paige's shoulder. "Oh, you poor dear. You feel awful about it, don't you? I'm so sorry." _

_I was shocked. Paige seemed to be too. "Thanks, I think." she said._

_I turned angrily to Phoebe, "That's it?" I said, "That's all the ass-kicking you're gonna dole out? You're supposed to be sisters."_

"_She's clearly devastated about this," said Phoebe in a you-should-know-better tone, which I ignored._

"_But you can't let her off the hook!" I said, "You need enough guilt to get her to fix this."_

_Suddenly Paige's scrying crystal dropped on the map, landing in the middle of the Indian Ocean. "I think I just fixed it." said Paige, "I think we just found Leo."_

"_We?" asked Phoebe._

_Paige stood up with Wyatt in her arms, "Yep, Wyatt and me. I mean, nothing's more important to Leo than him, right?" she put Wyatt back into the playpen, "There you go, big boy." She stood up and turned to Phoebe, "Let's go."_

_Valhalla. Somehow she had managed to find Valhalla. If she went there and found Leo, things could get ugly for me fast. "Go? Go where?" I said, putting as much disbelief and doubt into my voice as possible, "It's pointing to the middle of the Indian Ocean."_

"_There must be something there. I trust Wyatt." said Paige with conviction. _

"_No, this is crazy." I said, but Phoebe held up her hand and I stopped talking. Old habits die hard._

"_Chris, she's feeling really strongly about this," Phoebe walked over to Paige and stood next to her, putting her arm over her shoulder. "I have a new power," she said excitedly, "I'll explain on the way."_

_Paige turned to me, "Oh, hey, can you take the dogs back for me? The addresses are in the book." _

_I was shaking my head vehemently, "No, there's no way--" Paige orbed out. Damn it. I felt my frustration build up. I kicked one of Wyatt's toys across the room, and it made an annoying squeaking sound as it came into contact with my foot. Wyatt's shield came up, and I looked at him in disgust. Disgust for what he would become, and what he would be responsible for. "If anyone should be protecting themselves," I said to him, "It's me from you."_

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_I'm in the dining room with Phoebe, Paige, who was looking over the Book of Shadows, and a dog whose family hadn't been home. Phoebe and Paige had just orbed in minutes ago._

"_You could have been killed, you know that?" It was true. None of the Valkyries except for Mist, Freya and Kara knew about the Charmed Ones connection to Leo. They wouldn't have minded killing them if they intruded, and the warriors would kill anyone who wasn't a Valkyrie on sight. "Huh? What were you thinking?" _

"_We were thinking of finding Leo, which we actually did if that matters to you," said Paige defensively. _

"_What was up with that skirt he was wearing?" asked Phoebe as she paced behind Paige._

"_At least the skirt wasn't plaid," quipped Paige, and Phoebe laughed._

"_I don't believe this. It's like neither of you guys are taking this very seriously."__ I said. Didn't they care at all about Piper? Why couldn't they leave Leo be in Valhalla? It wasn't like he was getting hurt or anything. The bulldog barked at me. "Hey!" I said to Paige, snapping my fingers at the dog, "Do you mind?"_

"_Well, I can't help it if he doesn't like you. Hey, you were supposed to take him back home anyway__"_

"_I tried, but the owners weren't there," I said, still angry that she'd made me take back the other dogs, "Besides, the dog, he's not my job, he's yours."_

"_I know, don't remind me," said Paige moaning slightly before turning to the dog and snapping her fingers at him, "Hey, Oscar, lay down."_

_The dog walked over to Paige and lay down at her feet. If the dog had had brains, it would have been a kiss-up. "Aw, look Paige, I think he likes you," said Phoebe._

"_Yeah, great," said Paige sarcastically, "Don't tell me you can read his feelings now too."_

"_No, but if I start licking your toes, run." said Phoebe lightly before turning to me, "Where's Piper?"_

"_I put her in her room, hoping it might jog her memory." I said angrily. Why did they care more about Leo then their own sister? "Since no one else seems to be trying to." All they cared about was Leo._

_Paige stopped flipping the pages in the Book. "Here it is. _Valkyries. A powerful race of demigoddesses who scout the battle grounds for dying warriors._"_

_Phoebe read over Paige's shoulder, "_Then take their souls to Valhalla where they prepare them for the final world battle."

_The Book was slightly inaccurate there. Valkyries were physically strong, but their magic wasn't much better then average. I wasn't going to tell Phoebe and Paige that though. They would kill the Valkyries to get to Leo, and I didn't want any more innocent blood on my hands if I could avoid it._

"_Valkyries, huh?"__asked Paige._

"_Does that mean they're good?" asked Phoebe, confused. _

"_How can they be good if they've got Leo?" asked Paige. It was amazing at how black and white the sisters sometimes viewed the world. They didn't seem to understand the finer shades of gray._

"_And how did they even get Leo?" asked Phoebe, "He's not a dying warrior, he's an Elder."_

_I had to change the topic, or at least the train of thought. For my sake. "Look, why don't you guys concentrate on helping Piper, and I'm gonna go fill in the Elders and see what they want to do." I hoped they would buy it. The Elders got busy very easily. I could take my time._

"_But, Chris, we don't have time for that," said Phoebe, her determined face firmly set, "We have to go back for Leo now."_

"_Why?" I said casually, "It doesn't sound like he's in any sort of trouble."_

"_He's only stuck in a cage," said Paige forcefully._

"_And they tried to kill us when we tried to save him," pointed out Phoebe._

"_My point exactly," I said quickly, "It's to dangerous. You're not going back."_

"_Wait," said Paige in disbelief, "Let me get this straight. Are you telling me that you'd rather just let Leo rot there? Is that what you're saying?" Her face hardened. _

"_No but--" I started, thinking for something to say. _

"_He needs our help." said Phoebe firmly._

"_Not to mention, he may be the only way we have to save Piper." added Paige logically._

_I sighed. They were, unfortunately, probably right. Piper and Leo were connected by love and magic. The power of two may not be strong enough to fight demons, but hell, it was strong enough to wear me down. At least for now. I would have to help them. Otherwise they'd be killed in Valhalla. _

"_You can't orb into Valhalla undetected. The only way to get there safely is with a Valkyries pendant." I explained, and I saw Phoebe and Paige exchange looks. "But that still won't get you close enough to Leo. He's too well guarded now."_

"_How do you know all this?" asked Paige, suspicion on her face and in her eyes._

"_I've crossed paths with Valkyries before," I said, but Paige's expression didn't change. "In the Future," I added, a half-truth. "__ Anyway, I can get you the pendants, but the only way to get close to Leo is by proving to the Valkyries that you're one of them."_

"_How are we supposed to do that?" asked Phoebe incredulously. _

"_Easy," I said, "Just arrive with a warriors soul."_

"_Oh! Easy." said Paige sarcastically, with a touch of worry in her eyes._

"_Where are we supposed to find a warriors soul?" Phoebe asked, almost laughing out of stress._

"_Beats me," I said, orbing out before they could see my small smile. It would be hard for them to find a true warrior. Although, they would probably go to Darryl. I frowned. I'd have to get the pendants. Valkyries died without their pendants and would never give them over willingly. I would have to kill three Valkyries. And they would have to be Valkyries that I knew, so I could track them. Damn and double damn. I hated to kill. I pushed all thoughts away and felt for a familiar psychic scent of a Valkyrie. I sensed one. Leysa. She'd been one of Freya's messengers before, when I first sent Leo to Valhalla._

_I orbed to her, hearing her speak just before I orbed in. _

"_It's alright, you don't have to be afraid," she was saying, "You're a brave warrior. I'll take care of you."_

"_I don't think so, Leysa," I said, orbing in behind a wounded cop, "Not this time."_

"_What are you doing here?" asked Leysa, her brown cheeks reddening slightly in anger at my interference. _

"_My plans have changed, unfortunately." I said. I would tell her what I was doing before I killed her. It was only right that she understood. "The witches, they found Leo sooner then I would have liked."_

"_That's not my problem," said Leysa, and I saw a small sliver of fear and steel in her eyes. "We kept our end of the deal."_

"_I know, and I'm forever grateful." I said, really meaning it, "But I can't risk them finding out what I'm up to." I raised my fist and forced myself to look at Leysa, to see what I was about to do, so I would know the consequences. "I'm sorry," I said. I clenched my fist, using my magic to crush her heart. It was the fastest death I could give her without destroying the pendant. _

_I saw the shock, anger, and pain in her eyes. I forced myself to look into them, to acknowledge that her death was my fault. I deserved her anger. I was angry at myself. But it had to be done. Leysa clutched her chest and fell to the ground. My magic told me she was dead._

_I walked over to her body. I held the stone in the necklace. "Forgive me," I told her body, and I took the necklace. Her body vanished, and I stood up. I walked over to the cop lying on the ground. He was Asian, and he looked at me with fear in the darkest corner of his eyes. He had seen me kill Leysa, he could identify me. I raised my fist, and then hesitated. He was a mortal, and had been severely wounded. No one would believe him if he told then about a man who killed a woman if there was no body. They would accept his story as fevered ravings. I didn't need him dead. He didn't deserve to die. Neither had Leysa._

_I picked up the cop's radio. "Officer down." I said, looking around for an address, "Eighth avenue sewer. We need an ambulance." I stood up and looked down at the cop, who glared at me. He would remember me and what I had done, even if he never saw me for fifty years. So would I. I orbed out, and continued the hunt._

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_I orbed back to the manor into the living room. I had killed two more Valkyries, Arath and Krea. I hated killing them. It had to be done, but I hated it and myself. I would light candles for their spirits later. When this was done with. I sat down on the couch and put my hands over my face. I sighed deeply, and bit back tears of disgust. I focused on what had to be done. Piper had to be able to go with Phoebe and Paige to Valhalla in case they needed the Power of Three._

_I orbed up to her room, and she jumped, but managed not to make anything explode. "Don't do that!" she said angrily. "I still don't understand what's happening to me. _

_Time to lie. "Your name is Piper, and you are a Valkyrie." I said._

"_I am?" she asked, "What is that?"_

"_You're a demigoddess, a warrior. You take the spirits of dying warrior men to Valhalla, where they're trained for the final world battle."_

"_What's that?" asked Piper._

"_It's the ultimate battle where good and evil will fight each other with everything they have. You train warriors to fight for good. The leader of the Valkyries is a pale Valkyrie named Freya. Her two closest Valkyries are Mist and Kara. Show them respect, they have quick tempers." I said, making sure Piper was listening. She was nodding. _

"_You have two sisters, those girls you saw before. They're Valkyries too. You were temporarily turned into a witch, but I got a pendant that will turn you back into a Valkyrie. You have to go back to Valhalla, where you belong."_

_Piper nodded. "Give me the pendant," _

_I nodded and put the pendant around her neck. "Just remember everything I told you, and you'll be fine. Okay?"_

_The pendant glowed and Piper changed. Her outfit changed so she wore a leather skirt and a sleeveless leather top. But her air changed. She seemed more confident, almost arrogant. Perfect._

"_Okay, we got the --" said Phoebe as she and Paige entered the room, and stopped when they saw Piper. "Oh my god, what did you do to Piper?" she asked._

_I smiled at Phoebe's face, my back to Piper now. "I turned her into a Valkyrie, and convinced her she is one too." Phoebe's eyes seemed to pop out of her sockets. "Actually, it wasn't all that hard really, considering the fact that her mind is basically blank."_

"_But why?" asked Paige._

"_Because you might need the Power of Three to get Leo out of Valhalla, and this," I gestured to Piper, "Is the only way you'll get her into Valhalla."_

"_Well, if Piper ever gets her memory back, she's going to kill you." said Phoebe, and I couldn't be sure whether or not she was joking._

"_Why?" I asked. _

"_Because she hates wearing those costumes just as much as we do," said Phoebe gesturing towards Piper's leather skirt. If all Piper would be angry about was a leather skirt and top, I'd be fine._

"_Mm-hmm," said Paige, nodding wisely._

"_Yeah, well, in that case, you're gonna kill me too." I said, smiling slightly. I took out the other two Valkyrie pendants, and I saw Phoebe smile. She probably liked the costumes._

_They put the necklaces on, and changed as well, though they seemed more witch then Valkyrie. Phoebe opened up a portal, the pendant showing her instinctively what to do. "See you later, Chris." said Phoebe as she, Paige, and Piper stepped through the portal into Valhalla. I'd done all I could. Now I just had to wait._

_I went down to the dining room, and I waited._

_------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _

_It's about seven o'clock. I'm getting nervous. No, I'm getting beyond nervous. This was taking way too long. If any of them had been hurt, it would be all my fault. I almost hoped they would rescue Leo, just so they could come back here. The house was too quiet. It felt like it was the museum from the Future. _

_Suddenly I sensed Paige orbing into the living room. I got up and walked to it, relief flooding through me, along with frustration that it had taken them so long. "Geez, it's about time. I was starting to get worr--" I looked around the room. There was only Phoebe, Paige and Leo. "Where's Piper?" I asked._

"_You son of a bitch!" growled Leo as he punched me in the face, grabbed my shirt and pulled me against the wall. I slammed into my hip and my face ached from where Leo had punched. He hit very hard. "Why'd you do it?" he growled in my ear. My instinct screamed at me to lie. _

"_Do what?" I asked, my jaw aching as I said those two words._

_Leo threw me across the room. While I was in the air I felt dizzy, but then I slammed into a chair, tumbled off the back of it and landing on the floor. I felt pain all over my back, numbed by adrenaline. _

"_Leo, stop it!" said Paige, but Leo started to come towards me again. He could kill me. If Leo kept on like this, he could kill me, or at least severely injure me. I was scared. I started to orb out. I felt Leo grab my orbs, spun them, and let go. _

_Still in orb form I was thrown into a cabinet, and as I reformed, I felt glass shatter by my back and above my head. I fell to the floor, but stood up, stepping on broken glass. Leo started to advance again, but Phoebe stopped him, getting in his way and putting her hands on his shoulders._

"_Leo enough! This hostility is killing me." she said, putting one hand on her chest._

"_What is wrong with you?" demanded Paige, "You been playing Gladiator too long?"_

"_You didn't tell them did you?" Leo said to me in a threatening voice. I felt my breathing quicken from fear and tension. I had so much on my shoulders. I had so much to carry and to live with. I didn't know if I could deal with this right now._

"_Tell us what?" asked Phoebe._

"_That he was the last one to see me," said Leo, glaring at me. He seemed to radiate threats and violence at me, without talking. He looked into my eyes, and didn't break contact. "Right afterwards, I was mysteriously trapped in Valhalla."_

"_Ok, so what, that makes me responsible?" I said, my voice trembling slightly from all the stress. I clamped down on it, going into neutral. "Is that what you're saying?" I had to deny it. I had to deny it with my last breath. Deny it, even though I was guilty of that, and far worse things._

"_Okay, why would Chris do that?" asked Paige. It was ironic that she was defending me the one time I was guilty._

"_Why else?" asked Leo, "To get rid of me." I wondered if he thought I meant for him to die. I hadn't. I still needed Leo. _

"_That doesn't make sense," said Paige._

"_Doesn't it?" said Leo, temporarily breaking eye contact to look at Paige, before looking back at me with his accusing eyes. "He manipulated things so I would become and Elder. Forced me out of the house, didn't he?"_

"_So you could save the world," I said slowly, intensely, controlling my voice on every word so I didn't reveal my weakness inside. _

"_Alright, Leo, I know how upset you are." said Phoebe, also defending me, "And by know, I mean I literally know. But, you're way off base here. Chris has been the model whitelighter since you've been gone. He's done nothing but good."_

_My life seemed to be made out of nothing but lies. And I was the liar in the middle of it all. My family would never understand all the different shades of gray there were._

"_He's sent us after so many demons, if anything, he's been too good." said Paige with a small smile._

"_He's the reason we were able to save you." said Phoebe, looking at Leo, silently asking him to understand._

"_You're welcome!" I said rudely, opening my arms. Leo didn't understand. None of them did, and none of them could. The least Leo could do was act civil to me, at least in this time. _

_There was a slight pause. "Where's you get the pendants?" Leo demanded while looking at me. I knew he thought that I'd taken them by force. I almost laughed humorlessly, but it came out more like a panting chuckle. _

"_Leo!" admonished Phoebe. _

"_Alright." said Leo, breaking eye contact and turning to Phoebe, talking now in a much softer tone of voice. "Alright. I'll let it go for now." Whenever 'for now' ended, it wouldn't be pretty. "So where's Wyatt?" Leo asked, "Can I see him?"_

"_No, you can't," said Paige, "He's staying with Sheila until we figure out how to rescue Piper."_

"_Which is gonna be hard because she doesn't want to be saved." pointed out Phoebe. _

"_Well, if we're gonna save her, it's going to have to be as witches, not as Valkyries." said Paige. She and Phoebe both pulled off their necklaces and turned back into themselves. "Book of Shadows?" Paige asked Phoebe._

"_Got it," said Phoebe as she and Paige started to head toward the attic. I followed them, felt Leo follow me, still radiated anger, though it was more muted now._

_When we got to the attic, Phoebe sat down with her hand on her head. Paige went to the Book and was rereading the Valkyrie page. I was standing next to Paige and Leo was standing opposite me._

_After rereading the Valkyrie section out loud, Paige asked. "So, any ideas on how to get Piper back?" _

"_Well, we have to get her memory back," said Leo._

"_Ok," said Paige, "I'll try to revise the spell." she took out a pencil and a notepad and started writing._

"_I don't understand." I said. How was this complicated? "Why don't we just storm the place and find her? It's not like we don't know where she is."_

"_Because they'll be expecting you, that's why," said Leo at once, "It's suicide,"_

_I felt the implication in Leo's words that I, and I alone, would be expected in Valhalla. The stupid bastard. "We got you out safely didn't we?" I said, stressing the 'we' slightly. I should have just left him in Valhalla._

"_But it cost us Piper," said Leo._

"_Okay, you guys, would you knock it of?" asked Phoebe loudly, "I'm still reeling from Piper's emotions, I don't need this."_  
_I'd never meant to bother Phoebe, especially since she was so vulnerable because of her empathy. "Sorry," I said, feeling like a young boy again._

"_So, how's it going?" asked Phoebe. She'd been regaining control over her emotions, and hadn't really focused on what Leo, Paige, and I were talking about. _

"_I am almost done." said Paige, looking up from the notepad and turning to Phoebe. "Um, I don't mean to burden you with my emotions but I don't quite see how reversing the memory spell's gonna help."_

"_Piper needs to believe she's a Valkyrie because it's too painful for her to be herself." explained Phoebe, "Way too painful, believe me. I almost passed out back there." _

"_Well, then believing she's a Valkyrie is the perfect option," I said as things clicked into place, "They serve the Greater Good, they're always in control, and they don't have to deal with pain or loss."_

"_Well, that's why we have to make Piper believe she's Piper again." said Phoebe, "Because if we don't get her back mentally, it won't matter if we get her back physically."_

"_Okay, but Piper wasn't exactly back before the spell," Paige pointed out._

"_What do you mean?" asked Leo._

"_Well, that little magical whammy you performed on her kind of, um, backfired."__ said Paige sharply. I controlled the urge to smile, happy that Leo had screwed up, and not me. At least I didn't go messing with people's feelings._

"_Yeah," said Phoebe reluctantly, "You see, after you left, Piper was really..."_

"_Chipper." said Paige, with all the sarcastic venom I could have hoped for. "Yeah." she said to Leo's bewildered face, "__Incessantly, increasingly, annoyingly chipper."_

"_What she said," said Phoebe._

"_I was supposed to make her feel less pain," said Leo, looking worried, embarrassed, and surprised. "I guess with me not around to pull it back a bit she got happier and happier." Of course. 'With me not around'. Sooo subtle. He just had to keep harping on my involvement. Well, if he could harp on my mistakes, I could harp on his._

"_Uh... no." said Paige with a fake smile, "Psychotically chipper."_

_I clapped my hands slowly. "Way to go," I told Leo sarcastically, enjoying this more then was probably right. _

"_Chris!" said Phoebe warningly, and I stopped clapping. _

"_What?" I said innocently._

_Phoebe put her head in both her hands. "Oh, I swear my new power is going to drive me crazy." she moaned._

"_You'll get the hang of it," said Leo encouragingly, "Just be patient." Ever the model whitelighter._

"_Are you sure?" asked Phoebe doubtfully, lifting her head out of her hands. "Because I remember Prue almost being destroyed that time she was an empath."_

"_Well, she wasn't supposed to become one. You are." said Leo, with an encouraging smile, "Maybe all this with Piper has made it happen a little sooner, but you can handle it. I know you can."_

"_I just wish I knew how to turn it on and off," Phoebe said glumly, "I feel like I'm at the mercy of everyone else's feelings, and it sucks."_

"_Bright side," said Paige lightly, "Maybe you can find out how Jason really feels about you?"_

_Phoebe looked better, excited now. "Yeah, but what if it's not good news?" she said._

"_Then you dump him before he dumps you," said Paige sassily, and Phoebe laughed. "I think the spell is finished," said Paige._

_The doorbell rang loudly. Oscar ran into the room, barking. Stupid dog. "Oh, great." said Paige sarcastically. _

"_You got a dog?" asked Leo, wide-eyed._

"_No, I got a career." said Paige with disgust. I saw Leo open his mouth._

"_Sore subject," I said briskly, "Don't ask."_

_Oscar barked loudly again. "Alright, alright, I'm coming." said Paige, as she and Phoebe walked out of the attic and down the stairs. Until they got back I was stuck in the room with Leo and a dog. Great. I hoped they would hurry up. Leo was glaring daggers at me, though I didn't think he'd hurt me again with the sisters still in the house. He wasn't that stupid. _

"_Leo! Chris!" called Phoebe. Leo and I walked to the door and got there at the same time. _

"_After you," I said, taking a step back. Leo hesitated for a moment and walked out first. Leo wasn't someone I'd want at my back. He trusted me probably just as much as I trusted him._

_As we came into the living room, I saw a cut, bruised and bloodied Darryl sitting on the sofa. Obviously, Leo had to Heal him. Leo went to the sofa and Healed Darryl. _

"_Feeling better?" asked Leo._

"_Yeah, thanks," said Darryl, looking up at Leo, "It's good to have you back."_

"_Thanks for helping me get back." Leo responded._

_I decided to milk whatever I could get from Leo. He'd caused me enough grief that I didn't feel guilty in the slightest about bothering him. As long as I had my powers, there was nothing he could do to me._

"_Ah, don't mention it," I said._

_Phoebe lightly slapped my leg in warning, before turning her attention to Darryl. "How long after we left did the warriors show up?" she asked._

"_Not long," he said, thinking about it. "Maybe a couple of seconds."_

"_They must have followed us from Valhalla," said Phoebe._

"_Great," said Paige, "That means they're after us now."_

"_Except they didn't hang out long enough to ask me where to find you," said Darryl, "Granted, I was looking through swollen eyes, but they just seemed lost and confused."_

"_So, what, they just took off?" I asked. That didn't make any sense. The warrior men from Valhalla were trained to fight, but only to fight evil, and only in the final world battle._

"_Thank goodness they did," started Darryl, "Because --"_

"_We never should have put you in that situation," said Phoebe, shaking her head, "We should have come up with another way."_

"_Forget it," said Darryl, "You know, it worked."_

"_Yeah, for you maybe," I said. Darryl was not supposed to have gotten hurt. Something was wrong here with the warriors. They couldn't be trusted to be predictable any more. "What about the next poor guy who runs into those warriors? They're trained killers."_

_Oscar jumped into Paige's lap. That dog seemed to follow her everywhere. "Yeah, but they only kill evil," said Paige logically. _

"_He's not evil," I said gesturing to Darryl. It all came down to the shades of grey. No one could ever be truly good or evil. Not humans, not Elders, not demons. _

"_Chris is right," said Leo, and I looked at him in shock. Was he actually backing me up? Was that even possible? "Not everything is black and white in this world. Warriors can't always tell the difference between good and evil."_

_It was strange that out of everyone in this room, _Leo_ was the one who seemed to understand the shades of grey. _

"_What do we do?" asked Phoebe._

"_Well, we need to find them fast." said Leo. _

"_That shouldn't be too hard," said Darryl, "They're gonna stand out. Even in San Francisco." That was too true. _

"_Which is why we need to move fast. If they're exposed, so are the Valkyries." said Leo urgently._

"_You're awfully forgiving considering everything they put you through," said Paige in surprise._

"_They still have a noble purpose to perform. Keeping their secret is key to them fulfilling it." Leo glared at me, "Besides, it's not the Valkyries' fault that I ended up there."_

"_Which brings us back to the warriors," I said. Any feelings of gratitude I had for Leo evaporated. I dimly wondered if he would ever let the Valhalla thing go. Knowing Leo, probably not. I'd haveto think of something. Right now I was just winging it._

"_And let's not forget about Piper," Phoebe reminded._

"_Maybe we should split up," said Leo. He turned to Darryl. "You should go to the police station. They're gonna show up on the radar screen in a big way."_

_Darryl stood up and his pager beeped. "You know what, the office is paging me anyway," he said._

"_Alright, make sure you're the first cop on the scene, we might need you to buy us some time." said Leo._

_Darryl had started to walk out, but he turned back to us. "Alright." he said, before leaving. I heard the door close behind him. _

"_Uh, maybe I should go to the newspaper and do the same thing," suggested Phoebe._

"_Good idea," said Leo before turning to Paige, "Paige --"_

"_I should take Oscar home before I get fired." she said, and apologetic grin on her face. _

_There was an awkward pause. "You're kidding, right?" asked Leo, not really asking. _

"_No, I promised the temp agency I'd have him back in the morning and, uh, it's the morning." said Paige. Leo opened his mouth to protest, But Paige spoke before he could. "__Listen, before you say anything;when you've been gone, some things have changed. And one of those things is that I am determined now more than ever to have a life separate from being a witch."_

"_Fine." said Leo, "But now?"_

"_Yeah," said Paige, "I've already done the reversal spell, can't do it without Piper and we don't know how to get her. So, I'm just an orb away if you need help." Paige walked out of the room._

"_Paige--" started Leo, beginning to walk after her, but Phoebe held up her hand._

"_Let her go." she said, "It might seem silly to you, but it's important to her."_

"_See," I said contently, "It helps to be an empath." Phoebe could be an important ally later. She seemed like she could control Leo, at least a little bit. And she was smart. I'd liked her a lot in the Future, and I liked the past version of herself here._

"_No," she said, smiling slightly, "It helps to be a sister. And while we're on that subject, we have to come up with another plan to get Piper out of Valhalla." Phoebe grabbed her jacket and walked out of the room. I was alone with Leo again._

"_She's right," Leo said grimly as he walked over to me and grabbed the upper part of my arm. "Let's go." he said._

"_But--" I started to say, but he orbed out with me. I couldn't direct my orbs, and I had no idea where Leo was taking me. I had no idea where I would end up. All I knew was that Leo was orbing me away from the sisters, which was not good, no matter where we were headed._

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	10. Something Wrong

**Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men or Charmed. If you didn't know that by now then I don't know where you've been.**

**Rejoice people! This is the chapter where we finally get out of memory land and into kicking demon butt! I know this chapter is a bit shorter then normal, and I know I leave you at a wickedly lovely cliffie, but it's a good chapter. Also, the italics (after the memories are done) are when Chris, Rogue, and Logan talk in mind-speak. Enjoy!**

Something Wrong **  
**

_We reformed in Valhalla, at the entrance to the cave Mist had told me Leo had been kept in. Leo was still holding on to my arm, and he was holding it so hard I knew it would bruise later._

"_Leo, what's going on?" I said. This was not supposed to be happening._

"_Come on, in here." growled Leo, and he pushed my back with his other hand._

_I considered orbing out, but we were to close to the cave for me to be sure I'd be able to. Also, even if I did orb out, Leo was too close. He could follow my orb trail and bring me right back. I'd have to play along until I could figure out what was going on. As we walked into the cave, Leo pushed me again to make me go faster. _

"_Easy!" I said. His fingers were still digging into my arm, though it didn't hurt as much as it would have if I wasn't wearing my sweater._

_We entered the cave, and I saw two warriors with their weapons up start to walk towards us. One seemed to be from the Roman or Greek days, the other seemed to be from early Africa. Valhalla had warriors from all times. I saw the large, circular cage the Valkyries had put Leo in. _

"_Who goes there?" demanded the Roman looking one._

"_What's the matter?" said Leo in a soft voice that held anger underneath, "Don't you recognize me?"_

"_Leo?" asked the warrior, "But we heard that the witches had broken you out."_

"_Disinformation," said Leo harshly, "Enemy's favorite tactic, don't fall for it again." _

_The warrior put his sword point on the ground as a type of salute. The African warrior had been silent this whole time._

"_Right, sorry" said the warrior, "It's just that everyone's a little on edge, especially since the alert's been sounded again."_

"_I know, I caught the intruder," said Leo, glaring once at me. I looked at him in surprise and worry. What the hell was he thinking? Was this his idea of revenge, give me over to the Valkyries? I hoped Leo was just acting, otherwise I was seriously screwed._

"_Where's Freya?" asked Leo, "She'll want to question him." Shit. How could I get out of this?_

"_She's not here, she went after the warriors in the city," reported the warrior._

"_And the new Valkyrie, where is she?" asked Leo. He meant Piper._

"_They took her with them." said the warrior._

"_Alright," said Leo, "Then I'll have to question him myself." Leo opened the cage door and threw me inside with such force that I almost tripped. The warriors started to come towards Leo, but as a comrade. To help him torture me. I knew what the warriors did to intruders._

"_Alone!" Leo snapped at the warriors. They both nodded and walked out of the cave. Leo got into the cage and slammed the door shut. _

_Dimly, I hoped that Leo would wait until the warriors were a safe distance away, open the cage, let me out, and then leave to do something else. I knew chances of that were slim to none. Then Leo picked up two swords from the floor of the sandy cage and started twirling them, as though he was warming up. I knew that I couldn't get out of the cage. I had given the Valkyries a spell to make it orb-proof, and Leo was standing in front of the door with two swords. Leo was also physically stronger then me._

_He started to walk slowly around the cage, and I walked in the opposite direction. "What are you doing?" I said, my fear rising, "Leo, what's going on?"_

"_I am gonna get the truth out of you one way or another." said Leo calmly, still twirling the swords. I didn't take my eyes off him, I'd be a fool if I did. Leo was somehow more frightening now then when he had been yelling. "No sisters around here to help you this time." he taunted, "No orbing, no way out."_

_I had been so focused on Leo, that my body had kept walking automatically. I tripped over a skull in the cage, but managed to stop myself from falling._

"_Just you," Leo pointed a sword at me, "And me," he pointed the same sword back at himself. Leo threw the sword in his left hand at my feet, and we both stopped circling each other. _

"_You're joking, right?" I said, knowing that he wasn't. I would have to dissuade him. "Shouldn't we be getting back, to fill in Phoebe and Paige and to find Piper?"_

"_I already lost Piper," said Leo, a slightly crazed look in his eyes, "Pick it up." _

_He wanted to fight me. He didn't just want to hurt or maybe kill me, he wanted to feel like he was beating me too. This was his revenge, or at least, a part of it. If he ever proved that I was the one who trapped him here I would have the Elders, the Charmed Ones, the Valkyries, and most of the magical community on my tail. I'd be forced to hide out with demons. But, if I didn't pick up the sword, he wouldn't fight me. He was still enough of a pacifist not to kill or hurt an unprotected opponent._

"_You know this isn't very funny any more," I said as we started to circle each other again. "This isn't very Elder-like either." God. I knew that if it came to a physical fight with no magic, Leo would beat me. Especially since he had been in Valhalla for a little over a month. He was in peak physical condition._

"_Being trapped here for five weeks and fighting for my life has change me a lot." said Leo mercilessly, "Pick it up."_

_I shook my head, "No, forget it." Leo kicked a shield off the sandy floor, and at me. I managed to catch it, when Leo came at me faster then I was prepared for. I slipped the shield over my left arm and held it over my head as I ducked and grabbed the sword Leo had thrown down earlier. Leo was willing to attack me, and I had to be able to attack back._

_I stood up and blocked Leo's sword with my own. I tried to hit him with mine, but he blocked it and hit my shield with his sword, which I held so my head was protected.. Once, twice, three times he slammed his sword down on my shield. The sheer force of the attack made me fall down on the sand, panting._

"_I didn't do it," I said, and I lunged at Leo's ankle with my sword. I had to get him away from me. Leo blocked my sword with his, and with a flick of his wrist sent my sword flying out of my hand, and landing near the bars of the cage. I threw myself after the sword and managed to grab the hilt. I rolled over, ready to come back up, but Leo was standing over me. He put his sword under the corner of my jaw where it connected to my neck. I swallowed reflexively, and let my hand go lax around the sword hilt. My arm was over my head, and too far away for me to throw the sword without risk that Leo would cut my throat._

_Leo had me. He could kill me. He seemed crazed enough, and I had absolutely no leverage. I had nothing. I was breathing hard, and at the same time trying to move as little as possible. "You can't kill me, I'm a whitelighter." I felt the sword moving against my throat as I talked. The cold steel scared me. But maybe my words could save me. If Leo knew he could kill me, he would have a lot more leverage. If he thought I would reform if he stabbed me, then he might not do it. I hoped._

"_No?" breathed Leo menacingly, "Then why are you sweating?" I closed my mouth and breathed through my nose, afraid that each breath might be my last. I swallowed again, my mouth dry with fear. "I'm gonna find out the truth. I'm gonna find out who did this to me, I promise." snarled Leo._

_I tried, moving as little as possible, to edge my neck away from the sword. Leo wasn't stable right now, his eyes were crazed with blood lust. "Right now, we're gonna catch up with Phoebe and Paige, and have a little chat with the Elders." he said._

Logan's POV

Suddenly, I felt a forced stop. It was like when you're on a roller coaster, and then it stops without warning. I realized that I was on the floor in the kitchen. I felt a featherlight touch in my mind that I instinctively knew as Rogue. I sensed that she was on the floor too. I opened my eyes, and blinked tears out of them. I waited a second before I sat up, allowing my eyes to readjust to natural lights, and not memories. I stood up, and helped Rogue up too. Chris was standing with his arms crossed defensively.

"Well?" he asked.

The poor dickhead. I didn't know how he'd managed to survive. I felt his mind withdraw slightly. He was scared. He probably thought we thought he was a monster now. I felt sorry for him, but I knew he didn't want my pity. I wouldn't.

"You've had a hard life," I said. What more could be said? I felt Chris' relief, and saw him smile slightly. I gave him a nod, and looked at Rogue. She had tear streaks down her face, which she was trying to wipe away. I gave her the courtesy of pretending not to notice.

"I've done a lot of inexcusable things," said Chris, an he looked like he wanted to say more, but I cut him off.

"You did what you had to do to survive." I said, shaking my head. "And we'll both help you save Wyatt."

Rogue nodded. "If we use this connection well, I really think we can do it." she said, her voice slightly husky from crying.

Chris nodded. "Thank you." he said softly. I looked at Chris with a new respect. This kid had lived through more then anything I had. He was tough.

Suddenly orbs shined in the room. _"Chris?" _I mind-spoke, wondering whether this new person was a friend or foe.

"_It's probably Leo, none of the demons can orb."_ he mind-spoke back.

Ah. Leo. Having experienced Chris's memories, I felt resentment towards Leo. I realized dimly that most of the resentment was coming from Chris, but some of it was coming from Rogue and I, too. It must have been because of our mental connection. The orbs stopped and Leo appeared. He looked at me and Rogue strangely.

"Chris, who are these people?" he asked, looking at me with suspicion.

"_No one filled him in?"_ mind-spoke Rogue, and I felt a mental shrug come from Chris.

"_I forgot, with everything else that's been going on,"_ he said wearily, but without guilt.

"_Then fill him in,"_ I said.

"This is Logan and Rogue," said Chris, gesturing to Rogue and I, "They're from an alternate world."

"An alternate world?" asked Leo, glancing from Rogue to me, "What are they?"

"Mutants." I said briskly, and Leo narrowed his eyes at me.

"In our world, there's a widespread genetic mutation. About 30 of people are mutants, and have powers." explained Rogue. "We got sent here by accident when a shapeshifter startled a girl who creates portals." It was the short version.

"What are your powers?" asked Leo, less suspicious now, but just by a little.

"_Are we gonna have to go through this whole thing again?"_ I asked in mind-speak, before addressing Leo. "Well, I can do this," I said as I held up my fist and let my claws come out. Leo jumped, and I brought my claws back into my hand. "And I self-heal."

"I drain the powers or life force out of people of they touch my skin for too long," said Rogue, and I got a mental feeling that after seeing Chris's memories, she felt slightly more comfortable with her powers. I saw Leo eye her gloves with an expression I couldn't identify.

Leo's eyes popped open when Rogue said that, and he gave Chris a look that clearly said, _And you let these people get near Wyatt?!_

"_Look at his neck," _I mind-spoke, which was red with suppressed emotions, _"Maybe a vein'll pop."_

"_Logan!" thought Rogue sharply, as I felt Chris give a mental smile, "Just because he can't hear you doesn't mean you should make fun of him."_

"Leo, trust me," said Chris, "I came back from the Future to save Wyatt. Do you really think I'd have brought them here if they were dangerous?"

"They could be your accomplices," said Leo, ignoring Rogue and I. "And you really expect me to trust you?"

"Fine, don't," said Chris, shrugging, "It's not your trust I care about. So are you here to pick up Wyatt?"

"Yeah. Where is he?" said Leo. He was keeping things brisk, almost impersonal.

"In the playpen in the attic." said Chris, "Now if you'll excuse me," he turned away and walked out of the kitchen into the living room. Rogue and I followed him. I had to admire Chris's gut. What he just did, it was like he was dismissing Leo.

"_Good job."_ I mind-spoke. I was getting comfortable with the mental connection idea. The corner of Chris's mouth quirked upwards in a half-smile.

"_Thanks,"_he mind-spoke.

"When are the sisters gonna get back?" asked Rogue, "I mean, I know we haven't really kept time, what with seeing each others past and all, but shouldn't they be back by now?"

I felt Chris's alarm spike. He was estimating the amount of time that had passed._ "Two hours"_ he mind spoke, and I felt worry start to gnaw at me. It shouldn't have taken that long.

"Should we go help them?" asked Rogue, looking from Chris to me. Chris was quiet for a moment, thinking quickly.

"Well?" I asked. If we were gonna fight, I wanted to know when and where, and if not, there was no reason to get excited.

"No," he said, "Not yet. Piper's got to be okay, I would have vanished if she was dead."

"But what about Phoebe and Paige?" asked Rogue.

"I would have felt their deaths," Chris said, shaking his head. "There's probably just more demons then they thought there would be. Vanquishes take time." What he said made sense, but I heard the worry in his voice, and felt it in his mind.

"You know, Chris, it's a bit dumb to hide something when the two people you're talking to can read your mind." I said, "So, talk."

Chris sighed, and I felt the mixed annoyance and humor in his mind. "I am worried," he admitted, "Nandor shouldn't have been a problem to vanquish, but Gorgog could be dangerous."

"I thought their combined powers would be enough," said Rogue.

"Yeah, usually. But there's more to it then that." said Chris. "He wasn't in the Book."

"Doesn't that just mean they didn't know his powers?" I asked, remembering what Piper had said before.

"Yes," said Chris, "But it also means none of the Halliwell ancestors have ever faced him before."

"D'you think he came from the Future, like you?" asked Rogue.

Chris shrugged, "I don't know. It's possible, but I don't remember him."

"Could he be from a different Future, one ahead of yours?" I asked.

Chris shrugged again and ran his hand through his hair. "I really don't know. Almost anything's possible if you've got the right kind of magic."

"That's it," said Rogue softly.

"What's it?" I asked.

"Remember how Chris was saying before if we worked together we could protect Wyatt?" she asked. Chris and I nodded. "Well, if together we have the power to protect Wyatt, why not the sisters? Why don't _we_ vanquish Gorgog?"

"Rogue, are you sure?" I asked, worried. I remembered how she'd reacted when Paige had tortured the demon before. This wasn't like her.

Chris shook his head, "We shouldn't interfere with a vanquish unless we have to," he said, "We could end up distracting them, or accidentally helping the demon. If they need us, they'll call me."

"He's right," I said, and Rogue paused for a moment before nodding.

"I - I just wanna prove that I can handle it. That I' not weak." she said, looking at me beseechingly.

"You're not weak." said Chris and I at the same time. Chris's mouth quirked into a small smile, as did Rogue's.

"Trust me, kid," I told her, "If I thought you were weak, I'd let you know."

Rogue smiled. "Thanks," she said.

Suddenly I heard a voice call out in mind-speak, but it wasn't Chris or Rogue._"Chris!"_ called the voice. _"Chris!"_

"_The sisters?" _mentally asked Rogue. Chris nodded, grabbed three potions of a coffee table and stuffed them into his pocket.

"_They need me. Us."_ he walked towards Rogue and I and grabbed both our hands. _"Be ready do fight,"_ he mind spoke, before orbing us away.

Rogue's POV

Having experienced Chris's memories, I knew what it felt like to orb. Or, I knew what it felt like for _him_ to orb. _I_ felt like my stomach was flipping over.

When we reformed, my stomach went back to normal. I barely had time to register that we were in a cave with a rocky wall behind us, when Chris pushed my head down. I felt heat fly over my head, and explode into rock behind me.

"_Demon guards,"_ he explained, _"Vanquish them. Make as little noise as possible, we don't know who else is here." _Chris took his hand off my head, stood up, and flung out his arm, using his telekinetic power to send a demon flying into a wall. There were four demons, two had fireballs out, and one was running towards a stone tunnel.

"_Get the one running away,"_said Chris as he took out one of the potion vials and telekinetically sent it towards the demon he had attacked. The demon exploded in a fiery burst.

Logan was running flat out towards the the running demon. One of the other demons ran towards Chris, and the last one ran towards me. I almost panicked. I didn't have any potions, I'd forgotten to ask Chris for one. The demon threw a fireball at me, and I ducked down. Suddenly, I felt myself orb out, and reform. I was disoriented for a moment, and then realized what had happened. When Chris had forced my head down, he wasn't wearing gloves. He touched me. It was only for a few seconds, so he wasn't hurt, but I borrowed his power.

"_Chris, how do you throw something with your power?"_I mind-spoke, showing him my realization.

"_Anger, get mad."_ he said, understanding flooding his mind. _"Orbing is fear-based."_

Ok, anger. I let anger flood me, borrowing memories from my past, and from Chris's. I flung my arm to the side, and the demon was thrown sideways. I smiled, then remembered to stay angry.

"_Chris, potion!"_ I mind spoke. Chris understood, throwing a potion into the air, while throwing the other one at the demon who was attacking him. His demon exploded with a scream, but I barely heard it. I concentrated on the vial, and flung my arm at the demon. The vial flew towards the demon and broke. The demon died as the potion touched his skin. He screamed and burst into flames as he was vanquished.

"_Logan?"_I asked, feeling the connection to his mind.

"_The demon's dead, but he screamed pretty loud."_he mind-spoke, _"I saw the sisters. They're trapped in some kind of force-field. The same type as the one Paige used on the demon earlier, except it's purple. There's a guy in black on a throne-like chair. Dickhead thinks he's king. Come on, hurry." _

Logan sent us mental directions on how to get to where he was. Chris, who I felt Logan also speak to, and I ran, following his directions through winding tunnels. I felt Chris's worry, but he pushed it down.

As we turned a corner, I saw Logan standing behind a stone archway connected to the cave walls which was the entrance to the room where the sisters were trapped. Chris and I hid behind the arch.

"_Rogue, take off your gloves,"_ said Chris, hit with sudden inspiration.

"_What?"_ I sent back, surprised, _"It'd be dangerous."_

"_Here's the plan; we charge into the chamber, Logan and I try to take out the demon, and you absorb the power in the force field." _he explained quickly.

"_She's right, that would be dangerous," _said Logan.

"_Can you do it?"_ asked Chris. I thought about it. Usually I absorbed powers out of people. I'd never tried absorbing a force field before.

"_I don't know,"_ I said,_ "But I'll give it a try."_

"_Okay,"_ said Logan,_ "On three."_

"_Three,"_said Chris, and he ran into the room yelling at the top of his lungs.

Logan and I ran into the room. Logan ran to Chris, claws out, and they both started to attack the demon. I took a quick look at the battle, and saw that the demon was strong. Chris's power was having no effect on him, so Chris was launching various things around the room at him. Logan was unable to get close enough to the demon to cut him, and was busy dodging the fireballs the demon was throwing at them.

"_Rogue, what are you waiting for?"_ yelled Chris's mind voice.

"_Stop staring, kid,"_ agreed Logan, _"Take in the shield."_

I turned and ran to the purple force field around the sisters. "Rogue, what are you doing?" demanded Piper, "Get out of here before you get yourself killed!"

I was so used to talking mind-to-mind with Logan and Chris now, that the sound of true speech was slightly disturbing. I ignored Piper and threw my gloves onto the ground. I flexed my fingers nervously, and reached towards the force field.

"Don't!" yelled Phoebe, just as I touched it.

There was a tingling sensation around my fingers, but it wasn't painful. I felt my body start to absorb its power. The shield itself started to slowly shrink, coming into my hands. My hands started to shake as I continued to absorb power. I'd never held on to anyone this long before. A human would have died if I had. Suddenly the crystals at the base of the force field shattered, and I stopped absorbing power. The sisters stood up.

"What did you do?" asked Paige, and then I felt intense burning pain in my left side. I fell down with a cry of pain. I reached out with my mind and felt Logan's pain. He had been burned, and because of our connection, I felt his pain as if it were mine.

"Rogue!" said Phoebe.

"Demon," said Piper, "We gotta get the demon." She, Paige, and Phoebe ran towards the demon, who was unaffected by Piper's powers, both of freezing and blowing up.

"_Logan, are you okay?"_ I asked, but I felt the pain lessen, and I knew he was healing himself already.

"_Fine, kid."_ said Logan, as his wound healed completely. I took a breath of relief as my pain receded. I got up and ran after the sisters. Paige had now joined Chris in sending things flying at the demon from around the room.

"_Chris, throw Logan," _I thought spoke. Logan was too far away, that's why he couldn't get at the demon.

"_What?"_ Chris exclaimed, _"He'll get himself killed."_

"_Throw me, dickhead, I can't die."_ said Logan, although, technically we didn't know for sure if he could die or not.

Chris's response was to fling his arm out, and send Logan flying across the room. Claws extended to their maximum, Logan flew towards the demons' chest. The demon said something, I couldn't hear what, and a large fire ball appeared above his head. The fireball writhed and twisted and changed into a large snake made completely out of fire. The fire-snake threw itself at all of us, growing bigger with every fraction of a second. It was going to kill us. All of us. I heard the demon laugh.

I felt Logan's defiance and fear, and I felt Chris's shock and fear. I turned towards the sisters and saw in their eyes that they realized it too. We were all going to die.

"_NO!"_I cried, both out loud and in my mind. I closed my eyes, held my arms close to me, and threw them out to my sides. _"NO!"_ There was an explosion, and the fire engulfed us.

**A/N: I know I'm so evil, leaving a cliffie like that. But it was fun! Also, to all you X-Men fans, Gorgog is someone you know, and you're not gonna like it. Any guesses on who he is? REVIEW!**


	11. Revelations

**Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men or Charmed. **

**So, some of you are gonna love this chapter, and some of you are gonna hate this chapter. Either way, it's gonna have you at the edge of you seat with your nose millimeters away from the screen (I hope). Enjoy!**

_Revelations_

Rogue's POV 

But something was wrong. I didn't hurt. I didn't burn. I opened my eyes and looked past my extended arms. There was a purple force-field all around me, which the fire was spinning around, but couldn't penetrate.

"_Logan?"_I thought anxiously, _"Chris?"_

"_I'm okay," _thought Logan,_ "There's a big purple force field around me. It's blocking the fire."_

"_Yeah, me too,"_ thought Chris, _"Did you throw up the shields, Rogue?"_

"_I don't know. I think I did. I just got so scared." _I said, feeling a mix of pride and uncertainty.

"_Well, most shielding powers are fear-based,"_ said Chris,_ "You tapped into the trigger."_

"_What about the sisters?" _I asked,_"Can you sense if they're okay?"_

"_Yeah,"_thought Chris,_ "All of them are probably scared out of their minds, but none of them are hurt."_

"_Thank goodness," _I thought.

The fire which had been throwing itself against the shield suddenly vanished. I heard a slow mocking clapping. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, calming myself down enough to lower the shields. As I looked around, I saw that the sisters had been protected by a purple shield as well. I felt a glow of pride. Then I saw the demon walking slowly down the steps of his throne-like chair.

Logan's POV

I glanced at the sisters, and reassured myself that they were ok. Rogue and Chris both seemed fine too, but I didn't look at them, focusing all my attention on the descending demon. He had stopped clapping.

"Good job with those force-fields, Rogue," he said scathingly, "That was a nice twist. I didn't think you had it in you." He turned to me. "Logan too. I thought you both got sent to separate worlds. My mistake."

"_You know him?"_ came Chris's mental voice. He sounded angry, as though he'd been betrayed. He directed the question at both Rogue and I.

"_I'm not sure, I can't see him,"_ I thought back.

"_Something about him does seem familiar, but I can't figure it out,"_ agreed Rogue.

"What? You don't remember me? You should, Rogue, at least." he said mockingly. He stepped into a patch of light, and I looked at him closely.

Dickhead demon looked young, maybe eighteen or nineteen. His face had soot on it, and he had a scar going from the edge of his eyebrow to his cheek. He was dressed in black leather pants, and a long sleeve black turtleneck shirt with chainmail over it. There was also something strapped around his hands, but I couldn't see what.

"I thought he was a demon," said Phoebe to her sisters, but her voice projected around the room.

The demon chuckled darkly, "No. I'm not a demon. I'm a mutant."

"A mutant?" said Paige in disbelief.

"Another one?" asked Piper.

"Hey, Rogue, maybe you'll recognize these?" said the mutant, extending his palms to show them to Rogue. I saw them too. He had two lighters tied to his palms by black straps.

"John?" asked Rogue, but the mutant's face twisted into a snarl.

"No, not anymore. I'm Pyro now. Or Gorgog to the demons." he said angrily before turning mocking again. "You were so stupid. How d'you think Mystique got so close to Shannon, huh? Who d'you think lured Kitty away? Me."

"_Wasn't he Bobby's friend?"_ I asked Rogue.

"_Yeah, but I don't understand."_ she said, sounding worried, _"He was my friend too."_

"_Whatever he was, he's not it now,"_ said Chris, _"I say we find out why he's here and get rid of him."_

"_Don't hurt him,"_ said Rogue,_ "Let me try to talk to him."_

"What are you doing here? How'd you get here?" asked Rogue.

"Same way you did, only by accident." he said, "Shannon was practicing her powers when a bee flew at her. She panicked and her portal spun faster. It sucked me in like a vacuum. And do you know where I ended up?"

Rogue shook her head mutely, and I realized that whatever John had been, he was gone. He had been twisted into this demon-like creature. Honestly, I barely remembered the kid.

"In the Future, mine." he was pacing now, but in a predatory, confident way. "I met Magneto, and he showed me what the world was really like, and what it would become."

"What about the Professor?" asked Rogue, and I felt her loyalty for him like one feels heat off a fireplace.

"What about him?" shrugged Pyro, "He was weak. He had so much power, so much potential, and he used it for turning us all into whining pacifists. He deserves what he gets in the Future," Pyro smiled cruelly, "But, you don't know about that,do you? I won't spoil the surprise."

I saw Rogue start to get angry, and I felt her rage start to form. I wasn't sure what other powers she'd absorbed from the force-field, and I didn't want her to kill Pyro in anger. Somehow I felt that he was important. I felt Chris mutely agree with my feelings, like a mental nod.

"What happened then?" I asked, keeping my voice as neutral as possible. It was hard. I was angry for John's betrayal of the Professor and of Rogue and Bobby. But especially Rogue. If I could get my claws on him when he was done...

"Future Shannon tried to bring me back. She joined Magneto too, you know." Rogue's face fell, "Oops, was I supposed to say that?" mocked Pyro.

"What happened next?" I said slowly, putting as much threat into those three words as was possible.

Pyro looked disconcerted slightly, but continued. "I ended up in a different world. This one, except about twenty years into the Future. At first I was surprised. Witches and demons were unexpected. But then I met very important men, and they showed me the type of power I can have. They showed me what I can do."

"Who?" asked Chris, and I knew he was wondering if this might be a new lead on Wyatt.

"Now, would it be any fun if I told you?" said Pyro scoldingly. "Just suffice to say that they showed me my potential in a way not even Magneto could. So, one of them opened up another portal and sent me back here. He gave me a job to do, too. A very special one."

From the way Pyro spoke, it was obvious what the job was. To kill us. The traitorous bastard. "You filthy piece of shit," I told him. "I_might_ understand if Magneto brainwashed you, but you _want_ to kill us, you sick bastard. I smell it on you." I was telling the truth. He was leaking the scent of victory and a sadistic type of enjoyment.

Pyro smirked, and I knew what he was going to do a second before he did it. "Rogue!" I yelled, and sensing my realization, she activated the shields just as Pyro sparked hit lighters with a flick of his thumb and threw a column of fire at us.

"_Chris, tell the sisters to orb away and then orb_ us _away!"_ I thought spoke.

I latched onto Chris's mind, following him with our connection. I felt him orb out of his shield and reform inside the sister's shield. I was dimly aware of him talking to the sisters, and felt his recognition as the sisters took Paige's hand and orbed out. Then he orbed into my shield and extended his hand. I took it, and he orbed himself and me into Rogue's force-field.

Pyro seemed to realize what was happening. "No!" he yelled, as Chris extended his other hand towards Rogue.

"_We have to go,"_ he thought-spoke, and we both felt Rogue's hesitation. _"You can't help him now,"_ said Chris. Rogue took Chris's hand with her gloved one, and Chris orbed us back to the manor.

We reformed in the living room, and I put one hand on my fluttering stomach as I took my other hand out of Chris's grip. I saw Rogue, who looked pale and felt scared. I caught her feelings, and realized that she was scared and confused. I glanced at Chris, and saw that he looked concerned and worried, but not to the same extreme Rogue was.

The sisters were sitting on the sofa already when Chris, Rogue and I sat down on various fluffy chairs. All of them looked annoyed.

"So, who was he?" asked Paige briskly. She looked like she thought Rogue, Chris or I had somehow brought him here.

"He was a friend from the school," said Rogue, "He was a level three mutant. He had pyrokenises. I dunno why he's turned out like this. He was a good person."

"Yeah, that's why he tried to kill you, I'm sure." said Paige.

"And us," said Phoebe, "He's a really powerful...being. He obviously wanted us dead."

Chris shook his head. "I don't think so," he said, getting up and leaning against a chair, "He seemed more interested in killing Rogue and Logan then you. I think you were just the bait, though he probably didn't care whether or not you died too."

"He said he'd visited your Future, Chris," said Piper, "You don't know him?"

I heard the underlying question, 'are you working with him?'. "No," said Chris, "I've never seen him before." Technically, Chris had seen John in Rogue's memories, but there was no sense in telling the sisters that.

"But that doesn't make sense," exclaimed Phoebe, "If he's got some all-powerful patron who sent him here, why wouldn't he tell him about the Power of Three?"

"Maybe he did," said Chris, "But he probably thought he was strong enough anyway. He was gloating, arrogant. He probably thinks he's the strongest demon in the Underworld."

"Is he?" asked Piper.

"_Well?"_ Chris asked Rogue and I.

"We don't know what Magneto's taught him." said Rogue.

"He couldn't have done too much," I said, and everyone turned to look at me. "Look, in your world, your powers grow as you gain experience, right?"

"Yeah, so?" said Paige, getting annoyed.

"Mutants aren't like that. After we first get our powers, there's no change in them. They stay that way for the rest of your life." I said, explaining.

"_Unless Pyro was experimented on, like you,"_ thought Rogue. I'd told her the Professor's suspicions about me.

"_What?"_ asked Chris.

"_I might have been experimented on."_ I sent back to him.

"_We have to find time for you to show us your memories."_ he said_. "Maybe there's a connection."_

"_As soon as we're done talking to the sisters." _I told him_. "Then I'll show you."_

"So how'd he get so strong?" asked Piper, "Because there's controlling fire and then there's creating a giant fire snake out of a spark from a lighter."

"You can be taught different ways to control your powers," said Rogue, "Different ways to deal with them. I guess he was taught a method that lets him use his powers like that."

"No, you think?" said Paige sarcastically.

"Leave her alone, Paige," I said.

"He's right Paige, you're not doing us any good by snapping." said Phoebe. She turned to Chris, "Did Leo come to pick up Wyatt earlier?"

"Yeah, why?" asked Chris.

"Maybe he'll be able to find something out about Pyro." said Piper. She turned to the ceiling, "Leo!"

"One thing I don't get," asked Phoebe, "Why did he need the lighters? Wouldn't it just have been easier to create the fire?"

"But he can't do that," said Rogue, "He can't make a fire, he can only control what's already there. He can alter it to what he wants, like making it bigger, but he can't _create_ the fire."

"Leo!" called Piper again, and I could see her start to get annoyed at Leo's delay. I didn't like Leo.

Blue and white orbs came into the room, and reformed into Leo holding Wyatt in his arms. "I'm sorry, Piper, I was with Wyatt, and he had to be changed. What's wrong?"

"Well we need information on a mutant named Pyro." said Phoebe. "Though the demons know him as Gorgog."

"Mutant?" asked Leo, "Like them?" he gestured to Rogue and I, and I felt my stress rise up a notch.

"We have names," I said. "And unlike him, we're actually decent people."

Leo was quiet, but I could clearly see the mistrust in his eyes. _"What does he have against us?"_ asked Rogue.

"_I think it's because you're with me. Leo's convinced I trapped him in Valhalla, and he doesn't trust me at all." _said Chris wearily.

"_But you did trap him in Valhalla,"_ said Rogue, confused.

"_Well, yes. But I had to."_ he said.

"_We get it, Chris, don't worry."_ I said. _"We won't betray you."_

I felt Chris give us a mental smile, though his face stayed neutral. This guy was a master of control.

"I'll see what I can find out," said Leo, "The other Elders might know something about him." He handed Wyatt to Piper, and orbed out.

"Why don't you go to the Book and look up fire starters?" Chris asked the sisters, "Maybe we can adapt the spells to work on Pyro."

Phoebe nodded. "Okay," she said. She and Paige and Piper both got up and headed towards the attic.

I exhaled. "Rogue, you know that if he comes after us again, we might have to kill him." I told her. Her face turned pale, but she nodded, understanding. Our lives were more important then his. I wouldn't let us, Chris, Rogue, or I, die for him.

"Let's get on with the memories," said Chris after an awkward pause. I nodded and closed my eyes, allowing my shattered memories to surface.

_Liquid, silver, pain. I feel like I'm being torn apart. I catch words said above me, and I can't see who's talking. _

"_Mutant," the voices say._

"_Commence with the operation," a male voice says._

_I feel a drilling in my skin, in my body, down to my bones. Then I feel nothing. _

_I'm lying down somewhere firm._

"_No memory," the voices say, "He'll have no memory." Then I feel pain._

_I'm still lying down, but in a bed now. Everything is louder, sharper. I smell things I never knew existed. I hear the heartbeat of a woman leaning over me. I can tell it's a woman because of her smell. She sticks a needle in my arm that already hurts like fire. I sit up, screaming, and then it happens. I feel a pain between my knuckles and my claws break through. Metal knives break through my skin and I bleed._

_I scream and so does she, backing away. It's now I realize that I'm naked. I run in horror, the woman throwing herself out of my way. There's a door. I open it with difficulty, and my claws scratch away some of the paint. I'm out. I'm running. I'm scared. I don't remember who I am, where I am, what happened to me._

_'Logan' my subconscious says, but I barely hear it. Men come out from the sides. There are three of them, with guns. One pulls the trigger, and a net comes out of it, throwing itself over me. I slash with my claws and get out. I'm not thinking. I run towards the man and punch him in the stomach with both hands. But he doesn't fall, he bleeds. He dies._

_The two other men run at me, and I slash. I don't mean for them to die, I just want them to _get away_. But they die, and I'm in pain. I look at my claws in horror and I scream. I've killed. I've killed. My breathing is ragged and I run. I crash into a pillar made of concrete, and I scratch it, my claws leaving a mark._

_A door, I have to find a door. I see one and I run through it, running, crying, screaming._

_I learn. I learn that fear or anger help bring out my claws and I can keep them inside me if I stay calm or in control. Every time I bring my claws out it hurts. I tried to kill myself in the beginning, but I always healed. My body would heal at unnatural speeds. _

_I stole stuff at first. I had to live. I only stole form criminals, though. They always had a particular odor. I got a mobile home. I moved around, wrestling for money. No one could beat me. I wouldn't stay hurt. I was a mutant._

I stopped the memories.

"Why'd you stop?" asked Chris as he and Rogue both got up from the floor. They had fainted.

"Because after that, was when I met Rogue, and then the battle with Sabertooth. I met the Professor, and he got me to trust him. Rogue and I became friends, pretty much everything you saw in her memories. It'd be a bit boring to see it all again just from my point of view." I said.

"We wouldn't mind," said Rogue, and I felt Chris's mute agreement.

"Look, we've got more important things to worry about right now." I said, "We've got to deal with Pyro. We'll worry about the memories later."

There was an awkward silence. "Look," I said, "The only reason we agreed to show each other our memories was so we could trust each other. We do, or at least I do. Right now, I'd be willing to put my life on the line fore either one of you. I trust both of you. And I feel that you feel the same way."

There was another pause. "I don't know who I am, who I was, before whatever happened." I said, "I want to be the one to find out. By myself. It's some part of me that I have to deal with alone."

Chris nodded, "Okay. I'll respect that." he said.

"Me too," said Rogue. "And I do trust you, both of you."

"Yeah," said Chris, "I must be getting soft," he joked. I smirked, but not unkindly.

"I don't think you have to worry about that." I said.

Paige's POV

I was in the attic pacing behind Piper and Phoebe as they were flicking through the Book. "I'm telling you, there was something they weren't telling us." I said.

"You've already said that twice, Paige," said Piper.

"And there is nothing about Pyro in the Book," said Phoebe in frustration.

"We could use that freezing spell, though," suggested Piper.

"He is only the second problem," I said, getting annoyed. Were they turning deaf or something? "Logan was hiding something from us, they all were. You saw how in the middle of the conversation, their eyes dilated? That's not normal. And they all turned that way at the exact same time. I'm telling you, there was something magical happening."

"Or, it could be the sun was shining in their eyes," said Phoebe, as she started to copy down the freezing spell.

"No, I got a weird vibe from them, a magic one." I said. I had. It was like whenever Leo got a message from the Elders. His eyes kind of went blank for a few seconds. It was the same with Chris, Logan, and Rogue.

"Look, if you're really worried, Phoebe will use her empathy, ok?" said Piper soothingly. I didn't want to be soothed. I wanted answers.

"Fine, but let's make this potion first," said Phoebe, "It should make ice grow up around them. That should stop Pyro's lighters from working."

"Maybe Logan and Rogue are Pyro's spies," I said, thinking out loud.

"Geez, Paige, why're you so paranoid all of a sudden?" asked Piper.

"Well maybe because this is the third mutant who dropped into our world, and he tried to kill us." I said. Was I the only one seeing the connection here? Mutants Trouble.

"Yeah, but it was Chris, Logan, and Rogue who saved us," pointed out Phoebe as she started to make the potion.

I sighed angrily, realizing that my case was a lost cause right now. "Just do your empathy thing when you're done with the potion, okay?"

"Okay," said Phoebe, satisfied. Just then, Leo orbed in.

"Wow, that was fast," said Piper.

"What did the Elders find out?" I asked.

"Well, they found a prophecy that might be about Rogue, which is probably why Pyro wants her dead." he explained, walking closer to us.

"What'd the prophecy say?" asked Phoebe.

"It said,

_'The one who is alone with iron allies will come  
__And she will be both old and young,__  
Suspects are a farce__  
The true enemy is of other making  
__She will change the Past and all that follows__  
Projecting her wish onto the world of the Twice Blessed.__  
And she must choose her path  
__Though she will have hidden aid  
__And will seem to be a Rogue__  
Though her heart is as pure as her mark of shame.'_" Leo looked at us.

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"I have absolutely no idea," he said, "And neither do the other Elders. They just said to protect Rogue and to keep a close eye on her."

"Keep an eye on her?" asked Piper.

"Well, they're not sure whether the prophecy means she's good or evil. It's very mysterious, even as prophecies go. They want you to protect her if she's good, and..."

"And stop her if she's evil." said Piper, with her head downcast.

"Yeah," said Leo.

"Does the prophecy mention Logan anywhere?" asked Phoebe.

"I'm not sure," said Leo, "Maybe the 'iron allies' are him? Because of his claws?"

"Guess you'd better do your empath thing," I told Phoebe sadly. It's one thing to suspect, and hope you might be wrong. It's another to know there was danger at your door.

"Guess so," said Phoebe.

Phoebe's POV

I sighed as I added the final potion ingredient into our pot. The potion exploded, which meant it was ready. I took out the dropper and filled three vials with the potion. Pyro had been way to strong to take risks.

I wasn't sure how to react to this news about the prophecy. I liked Rogue and Logan. They seemed like good people, even though I'd never used my empathy on them. I didn't really want to either. I was working on trying to get the empathy under control. I felt like I was about to betray Rogue and Logan somehow.

"Potion's done," I said glumly, "And the freezing spell is copied."

"Okay, then let's go downstairs," said Piper. She turned to Leo, "Can you bring Wyatt down, my arm's a little sore."

"No problem," said Leo.

"Thanks," said Piper. Leo picked up Wyatt, and we walked back down into the living room. Chris, Rogue and Logan all turned to us.

"So, did you find a good potion?" asked Rogue.

"Yeah, we found one that should turn him into ice where it touches him, and we found a spell that should freeze him." said Piper.

I was watching Logan and saw his pupil dilate. If you hadn't been looking at his eyes, you would never have noticed it. I looked at Chris and Rogue and saw that their eyes did the same thing.

"Okay, what was that?" asked Paige.

"What was what?" asked Chris, as their eyes returned to normal.

"Your eyes," said Paige. Their eyes all did it again. "It's happening again," she said.

"What exactly are our eyes doing?" asked Chris.

"They're dilating. I paused and then all three of your eyes dilated." said Paige, gesturing to Chris, Rogue and Logan.

"Why would they do that?" asked Rogue.

"I don't know, why don't you tell us?" said Piper.

Rogue shrugged. "Phoebe, do your thing," said Piper. I concentrated on Rogue, sensing.

I got a sense of worry, and a small sliver of understanding. "She knows, or guesses why it's happening."

"Why is it such a big deal?" asked Chris, "Pupils in the eye dilate all the time."

"Yeah, but your _irises_ are dilating, and that's not normal." said Piper, "We think there might be magic involved."

"Is there?" asked Paige.

"No," said Chris. I followed him with my power.

"He's lying," I said, "And I get the feeling he knows what's happening too." I reached deeper into his feelings just as their eyes started to dilate again.

"_Do you think they know?"_ I heard Rogue's voice, though her mouth wasn't moving.

"_No, they're just guessing. They would bust us if they knew." _said Logan's voice, though his mouth wasn't moving either.

"_Guys, if they know when we're doing this by our eyes, we're gonna have to be extra careful not to do it where they can see."_ said Chris's voice.

"_But wouldn't that defeat the whole point of it?"_ asked Rogue.

"_We need to be able to talk like this,"_ said Logan's voice, _"For Wyatt's sake, and ours."_

"Talk like what?" I said out loud. Chris, Rogue, and Logan's eyes all widened.

"Phoebe, what are you talking about? Talk like what?" asked Piper.

"You didn't hear that?" I asked, looking into Piper's confused gaze.

"Hear what?" asked Paige.

Still connected to a tendril of Chris's feeling with my empathy power, I heard them speak without talking again.

"_How'd she hear us?"_ said a worried Rogue.

"_It doesn't matter how, but don't mind-speak,"_ ordered Chris, _"We don't know if she's still listening."_

"What's mind-speak?" I asked a horrified Chris. Rogue and Logan exchanged looks with each other, and suddenly it dawned on me.

"Oh my god," I said, turning to Piper, "They're talking to each other's minds."

"What?" said Piper, getting up, "You're telepaths?"

"No, but they have a telepathic connection with each other." I said, beginning to understand. "That's how they worked together against Pyro. How Chris knew to orb to us, and Rogue knew to let him through the shield. They're working together."

I saw Chris swallow, and knew that I was right. Paige got up too. "You lied to us!" she said, addressing Chris. "You said you wanted to save Wyatt."

"Of course I do," said Chris, "That's why we established the link in the first place."

"When you caught the demon who was after Rogue and Wyatt, we decided to work together to protect them both." said Logan, who also stood up. I felt the tension in the room rise up another notch.

"You said they weren't your associates," said Leo, "What else did you lie about?"

"He didn't lie," said Rogue, also standing up, "But we had to keep this a secret. We didn't know how you would react."

"Everything I've done has been for Wyatt," said Chris with passion, "Do you really think I would have opened up a connection to people who could hurt him?"

"How are we supposed to believe even that, Chris?" said Leo, "You are the one who trapped me in Valhalla. You were responsible for the deaths of over half the Elders. You have Future information that you refuse to share with us. How to you expect us to trust you, especially after this?"

"He didn't trap you in Valhalla, Leo," said Logan, "And he is willing to put everything on the line to protect Wyatt and Rogue."

"And how would you know that?" asked Leo, "And why should we trust you either? You're working with him."

"Rogue and I may be many things, _Elder_," snarled Logan, "But we would never hurt a child or help someone who wanted to do so."

"Did you know there was a prophecy warning about Rogue?" asked Leo. Logan's eyes widened slightly, but his face didn't change otherwise. "The Elders think she might be a threat. Some of them even suggested that she might be a threat to Wyatt. With her borrowing power she can get through his shield and drain him until he's powerless. Then who would stop you or Chris from killing him?"

Chris shook his head, "You really think we would do that?" he asked, and I saw a shadow of pain in his eyes, though I was too angry at him to care.

"We don't know what to believe Chris," I said, "You haven't given us any _real_ reason to trust you." he hadn't, and I'd been stupid to think I could believe him, could like him. He was a manipulator. A betrayer.

"But you have to trust me, us," said Chris.

"No we don't, Chris," said Piper angrily, "When you trust someone, they don't manipulate you, or twist you to make you do what you want. Trust can only be given, or betrayed. And you just betrayed our trust. All of you did, and I want you out of my house, out of my club, and away from here. And I don't ever want to see any of you again."

Chris's face hardened. "You never trusted me in the first place," he said, pain rocking every octave of his voice. Logan looked stonily at us, and Rogue's face was a mix between sadness and rage. Chris walked over to Logan and Rogue, who took his hands. They orbed out.

I sighed and turned back to Leo and my sisters. "What do we do about them?" I asked, feeling weary, angry and sad all at once.

"We pray they leave us alone, and if they come back, we vanquish them." said Piper.

"But you can't vanquish Chris, he's a whitelighter, even if he is twisted." I said.

"Forget twisted, I think he might be Evil." said Paige, and Piper nodded.

"Then if he comes back, we'll give him to the Valkyries," said Piper, "I'm not letting any of them near my son again."

**A/N:So was that a cool chappie or what? What does the prophecy mean? What does Pyro want, and what's his job? Where will Chris, Rogue and Logan go? Tell me your thoughts and guesses! Review!**


	12. The Agreement

**Disclaimer: I STILL don't own X-Men or Charmed. I really wish I did, but I don't. **

**Okay, so a lot of you are really angry with Leo and the sisters for kicking out Chris, Logan, Rogue. Well fear not! There is a solution. One thing I noticed was that none of you seemed to care about the prophecy. (Hint: The prophecy is VERY important) So have a guess at what it means, I'll tell you if you're right or not. Enjoy!**

The Agreement**  
**

Rogue's POV 

Chris orbed us to P3 to his and Logan's room. It was around four in the morning. It was hard to believe that it had been a little more then 24 hours ago that I came into this world with Logan. Somehow it seemed so much longer. Chris let go of my gloved hand and started to silently gather things in a brown knapsack, though I felt his pain through our connection.

"What are you getting?" asked Logan as he walked over to stand next to me.

"Stuff we need," said Chris, not looking up as he continued to stuff things into his knapsack. I tried to touch his mind, to reassure him that things would work out, but his grief had built a wall around his mind. He didn't want to let Logan or I in.

I felt badly emotionally too. I had been accepted by the sisters, for however short a while. I had had allies, a purpose, almost like a family. At least, that was how it _started_ to feel. Now that was all gone. They didn't trust me. They might even kill me. They would call it a vanquish, but it would be my death. I felt betrayed.

I looked over at Logan, and he looked weary. I instinctively knew that Logan and I would talk later, but to do so right now would be too painful for both of us. Logan acted tough, but he got hurt just like any other human, witch, or mutant. He was used to the abandonment because of his scattered memories and mutation, and so was I to a degree. It didn't stop it from hurting.

"Can we help?" asked Logan.

"No," said Chris, straightening up, "I've got everything."

"Where are we gonna go?" I asked. Were Logan, Chris, and I going to live off the streets? With a demon? I felt sad and angry. Sad for us all, and angry that this was happening to us. All we had wanted to do was protect Wyatt. Chris was probably hurting more then Logan and I combined. I wanted so much to be able to help him.

"During the Titan Battle, Leo built Sanctuary for the Elders who escaped to Earth." said Chris, "The place was protected by fairy magic before, but I figure with our combined powers we can make it a place to live. At least for now." He looked from Logan to me, silently hoping for our cooperation, if not our approval.

"It'll be fine," I said, and looked at Logan.

"Will they be able to find us?" asked Logan after a short moment.

Chris face tightened. "I hope not." Because we all knew that if they did, we would have to fight them to protect ourselves. Chris would have to fight his family, and any one of us could die.

"Then let's go," I said. Logan and I both walked over to Chris. Chris slung his knapsack over one shoulder, took our hands, and orbed us away.

We reformed in a stone area. There was a ceiling over our heads, but there were several openings in the upper sides of the Sanctuary. There were five, and all were large enough to serve as doors, though I didn't think we would use them. We let go of each others hands and Chris looked around, seemingly satisfied. I knew he was focusing on the place, rather then what had occurred back at the manor. Chris chanted a spell.

"**Let us be protected  
****From those who mean us harm  
****We make ourselves hidden  
****With this protection charm  
****Scrying, Summoning, Calling, Spells,  
****We are now unaffected  
****Let us not be found  
****Let us be hidden and protected."**

Chris finished the spell. The grey stones glowed gold for a moment before turning back to their original color. He rubbed his eyes wearily and flung his knapsack on the floor. He paced back and forth for a moment, muttering softly, while Logan sat down. I sat next to Logan, glad that he at least, was still with me. Somehow, I knew, and I sensed that Logan did too, that Chris was making up a spell. He stopped pacing, and chanted,

"**Living, breathing, sleeping  
****All these require things  
****Let magic conjure what we need  
****To help us avoid stealing.  
****Beds, chairs, a wooden table  
****Are basic things we need  
****Let magic conjure this  
****And all else that it is able."**

Three cots on wooden boards appeared on the ground with one pillow and blanket per cot. A short wooden table appeared next to the cot farthest to the right, along with three small chairs next to it. In a corner, a hole in the floor opened leading downwards. A crude toilet. In the corner next to that, a hole in the ceiling opened, letting water flow through it into Sanctuary. The floor under the hole in the ceiling seems to melt, and then twisted, changing its shape into grilles. A crude shower. It wasn't much, but it would be enough. It would have to be.

Chris turned to Logan and I, not speaking, but asking for our opinions. "It's home," said Logan, and I nodded.

Chris shook his head. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault you're in this mess," he said.

"No," I said, upset that he should feel guilty for what wasn't his fault. "Logan and I made a choice, and we chose to stay with you. We're gonna be here all the way, for everything. And we're still gonna help you save Wyatt."

"She's right, Chris," said Logan, "So stop blaming yourself. Feeling guilty won't fix anything, and it certainly won't help us." Logan's voice softened, "Look, for all you've been through, you're still young. I know it's hard. Life's hard. But that doesn't mean you give up. It means you push harder until you win, until you do what you came here to do."

Chris nodded, smiling in gratitude. "I just need to get away for a while," he said, rubbing his eyes. "Here," he walked towards me, extending one hand towards my head, "Borrow my powers, just in case."

I knew that he wanted us to be protected, so I wasn't going to argue with him. Especially since he was so torn up inside. "Just don't hold on too long," I said, "A second or two is enough." Chris nodded and put his hand on my head. One second passed. Another. I felt his powers enter me just as he let go, panting slightly.

"Are you okay?" I asked, worried that he might have held on for too long.

Chris nodded. "Yeah, it's just a weird feeling." he turned to Logan and I, looking at both of us with concern. "Call me if you need me." We both nodded and Chris orbed out.

"How're you holding up?" asked Logan after the last of Chris's orbs had disappeared.

"I'm -" I started to say fine, but I was overwhelmed by my feelings. All the sadness, the anger, and the deep sense of loneliness and betrayal came rising to the front of my mind. I felt tears form in my eyes, and I tried to swallow them down. I couldn't. With a gasp, I started to cry. I just broke down, the tears streaming down my cheeks, shoulders heaving. I sank to the floor and cried. I felt Logan's hands around me, too blinded by tears to see. At first I was worried, but then realized that he was touching my sleeves. He hugged me close to him, careful not to touch my exposed face or head, but he held me close. I leaned into him, my friend, and cried into his shirt as he stroked my back, and let me cry myself to sleep.

Chris's POV

I orbed away to Bianca's and my spot. At the monument. I glanced towards the spot where Liane, Rick, and Rayne would become trees, but they were gone. It hadn't happened yet. I hoped it never would. I sat down on one of the benches, and took out Bianca's engagement ring, turning it over in my hand. I could barely believe what was happening. When I came back from the Future, I'd known my family wouldn't trust me. But I never thought they would threaten to vanquish me. To kill me. To see the look of hate and disgust on Piper's face, my mom's face, was painful. Piper would kill me if I came too close, too. She didn't make idle threats. Which meant I would have to either bide my time and try to get close to them again, or I would have to find out whether they were going to start hunting me.

Rogue and Logan. I sighed, rubbing my temples in stress. They never should have been put in this danger. They were in this situation because of me. Why were they so loyal? Ever since they landed in this world, I've given them nothing but trouble. But I felt Rogue's worry, and Logan's concern. It was ironic. They were treating me more like family then my real family was. The only thing I could do to repay them was keep them safe. Through our link, I realized that I was becoming friends with them. Friendship wasn't something I'd had for a long time, and I wasn't sure how to react.

I shook myself. I'd worry about that later. What was most important was whether or not we had been kicked out, or were being hunted by the Charmed Ones. I knew that even with Rogue and Logan, if we were being hunted, we wouldn't be strong enough to get away and not hurt my mom or aunts. We couldn't orb away forever. I orbed to the Seer, just as I had done before to find out about Rogue and Logan.

When I reformed in her layer, she was standing by the pool. "You saw me coming," I said, knowing it was true.

"Uh huh," she said, walking over to me, "And I know why you're here too."

I kept my face neutral, but the Seer smiled as though she was telling me a secret. "It's all over the Underworld, the Charmed Ones whitelighter was trying to kill the Twice Blessed Child, with the help of two mutants." she walked back to the pool, "And now you want to know whether or not the Charmed Ones are hunting you, right?"

"You're the Seer," I said, not saying more then what was needed.

"Hmm. But still, you _are_ a puzzle. Whitelighters don't kill their charges." she said, looking at me like I was a riddle waiting to be solved.

"I'm not your typical whitelighter." I said, "Are they hunting me?"

The Seer raised her eyebrow and smiled as she extended her arm over the pool. Ripples spread out in the water, and cleared to show what was happening at the manor.

_Piper and Paige were in the attic mixing a potion. Piper added an ingredient and the potion exploded, a cloud of smoke rising from the pot. Paige started filling vials with the potion, and added them to the rest of the vials on the table. There were at least six vials, three of them different colors. Phoebe walked into the attic._

"_So, how are things going?" she asked, stopping in front of the table where Piper and Paige were working._

"_Well, our whitelighter and his two mutants from another planet betrayed us by plotting to kill Wyatt," said Paige, "But other then that, we're just fine!"_

"_So are we going after them?" asked Phoebe, "Are we going to vanquish them?"_

"_No," said Piper, "One, I'm not sure we can, and two, unless they directly come after us, I think we should leave them alone._

"_Yeah," said Paige, "I mean, Rogue is just a kid, after all. Maybe Chris brainwashed her. He's obviously the mastermind behind this whole thing."_

"_It's possible," agreed Phoebe, "He's from the Future, who knows what type of powers he has."_

"_He's still just a whitlighter, even if he's from the Future," said Piper, "I think Logan is the worst threat right now. He can self-heal, which basically means he can't die."_

"_And Chris can't die because he's a whitelighter, and all Rogue has to do is touch either one of them and she can't die either." said Paige._

"_So what are all those potions for?" asked Phoebe._

"_Backup," said Piper, "The blue ones are for Chris, they'll take away his powers, so we should be able to handle that. The red ones are for Logan, they should knock him out for a few hours."_

"_But what about his healing abilities?" asked Phoebe, "Would the potions work with that in the way?"_

"_I'm hoping," said Piper, "The yellow ones are for Rogue. They should temporarily knock her out and then we can orb her away."_

"_Why did you make one sleeping potion for Logan and another for Rogue?" asked Phoebe._

"_The red one's stronger, I'm hoping it'll override Logan's healing abilities." said Piper grimly. "The yellow ones are just a normal knockout potion. You can also use the yellow ones on Chris if he still puts up a fight after he can't orb."_

"_And this is all just precaution, right?" asked Phoebe again._

"_Yeah," said Paige, "I mean, we don't know what they're gonna do next. We have to be able to protect ourselves."_

"_And Wyatt," said Piper._

"_And Wyatt," echoed Phoebe._

The water swirled, and the image faded as the ripples smoothed themselves out. "Interesting," said the Seer, smiling.

I clenched my jaw, unable to believe what I had just seen. I would never attack my family. But how could they know that? All they saw me as was a liar, a threat to them and their family. And I understood that, but god, they were getting ready to vanquish me, Logan, and Rogue. I was just glad they weren't actively hunting us. That had to be worth something. Maybe if I gave them some time, I could talk to them, establish a truce? Maybe.

But what about the Seer? I might need her later, but she was intelligent, cunning, and knew where to find power. I weighed her pros and cons. The pros outweighed, at least for now. I sighed, glad that I wasn't going to be forced to kill her. I would have done it if I had too, but I hated killing, and this demon seemed too...human. She was different somehow.

"Tell no one what you have seen," I said, and I orbed away. I would go back to Logan and Rogue and tell them what I'd found out. We'd figure something out. We would have to.

Logan's POV

I held Rogue close to me, letting her cry. Eventually, her breathing became less ragged, and slowed down. Her breathing deepened and I realized that she had fallen asleep. I felt awkward. I felt like I should put her on her cot, but I didn't want to wake her up by moving her. She needed to sleep. It was like a cleansing cry, that let her get everything off her chest. But she had worn herself out and needed to rest. So I kept my arms around her and felt comforted by her rhythmic breathing.

After a few minutes, Chris orbed in. "Hey," he said in greeting, noticing Rogue in my arms.

"Hey," I said back, "How are you doing?" He'd been pretty messed up before.

"I'm better," he said, but I felt through our connection that he wasn't being entirely truthful, "How's Rogue?" he asked.

"Everything just got to her," I said, "She cried a bit, and fell asleep. I figure we should let her rest."

Chris nodded. "D'you want me to put her on the cot?" he asked. I nodded, and Chris held out his hand. "Rogue," he said and she disappeared in a flurry of orbs, reforming on her cot, still asleep. I got up and sat on one of the wooden chairs Chris had conjured with the spell. He sat next to me.

"Look, Logan," he said uncertainly, "I'm sorry about how I acted before. I just left you and Rogue here. And at the club, I didn't mean to close off my mind. I just felt so...hurt." he shook his head, "I'm sorry, I'm just so used to keeping the pain inside."

"Chris, Rogue and I get it." I said, wanting to convince Chris of this, that we would be there for him. "We may not experience exactly what you're going through, but we've both faced abandonment before. And don't forget, we've both lived through your memories. We're each a part of each other now. Rogue and I are both willing to help you, with whatever you need."

Chris shook his head again, "Why are you so willing to put yourselves on the line for me?" he asked, "I've given both of you nothing but trouble." I felt the underlying worry in his mind that he would grow close to Rogue and I, and that we would leave him.

"We're not leaving," I told him, "Even if you find a spell to send us back. We're not going back until we stop Pyro and save Wyatt."

"And Rogue," said Chris, "Leo mentioned a prophecy about her. That's probably why Pyro's after her. Whatever she's supposed to do, he doesn't want happening."

"Is there a way we can figure out what the prophecy says?" I asked.

Chris sighed, "I'm not sure. I probably could find something, but it'll take time." he ran his hand through his hair. "Also, I went to see a Seer in the Underworld to find out what's happening at the manor."

"And?" I asked. I wanted to ask whether he was okay, but I knew I shouldn't. Chris could take care of himself, and he wouldn't want me to act all goopy. I wouldn't want to.

"I'll tell you when Rogue wakes up," said Chris, "I don't want to have to say it more then it's necessary."

I nodded. Whatever the news was, it was bad. I felt through our connection that Chris was afraid to open up his mind to Rogue and I, and his fear and pain were keeping his mind-speak closed off to us.

"You don't have to be afraid to let us in Chris," I said, "We're not gonna abandon you, I promise." Chris said nothing, but I felt him slowly work on his fears, forcing them to dissipate. I felt a warm feeling throughout my body, as Chris's mind became accessible again. The link was no longer one-way.

"_Thanks,"_ I mind-spoke. I felt Chris's acknowledgment.

"_Just don't break your promise,"_ he mind-spoke back. I felt a surge of respect for Chris, who had had to endure so much more then Rogue or I. He was strong. He was... my friend.

Rogue's POV

I stirred, dimly realizing that I was lying on something soft, and that my eyes were closed. I was faced with two choices; I could go back to sleep or I could wake up. I decided to wake up. I sat up, and rubbed the grit out of my eyes, yawning. I felt Logan and Chris's minds touch mine. I stood up, and opened my eyes, walking over to the table where Chris and Logan were sitting. I sat in the last empty chair.

I suddenly felt ashamed that I had cried, had broken down like that._ "That was nothing to be ashamed of,"_ said Chris's mind voice,_ "I've broken down before. Crying helps you heal."_

I don't know why, but I felt more comfortable talking in mind-speech._"Thanks,"_ I said, feeling better for his reassurances.

"_Chris went down to the Underworld to find out what was happening at the manor,"_ said Logan.

"_What did you find out?_" I asked, afraid of the answer. Logan and I both gave Chris our full attention.

"_They're not actively hunting us,"_ said Chris,_ "That's the good news. The bad news is they have specific potions for each of us that counters all of our powers."_

"_What do you mean?"_ I asked, my relief that they weren't hunting us fading fast.

"_For you they made a potion that knocks you out, though they're willing to use it on me too. They made a mega version of that potion for Logan, because of his healing powers. And they also made a potion that takes away my powers completely, in case I manage to avoid the knockout potion."_ said Chris, taking a breath before continuing. _"Those potions are non-lethal, which is a good thing. But all of the sisters said they would be willing to incapacitate us if we came after them or got close to them again. They would probably be willing to vanquish me or Logan if they knew how."_

"_What about Rogue?" _asked Logan.

"_They think I might have brainwashed her."_ said Chris bitterly.

I couldn't believe that. I was at a loss for words, though I felt an even bigger sense of betrayal then before. I was also insulted that they though my will was so weak, that I could be brainwashed. Especially because of my connection to Chris and Logan, I would never have to worry about the safety of my mind. We would all protect each other, allies and friends of our minds.

"_So if they see us, they'll attack us?"_ asked Logan.

"_Yeah, right away,"_ said Chris.

"_What about Rogue, would they attack her?"_ Logan asked.

"_What are you getting at?"_ I asked.

"_Well, if they think Chris or I brainwashed you, that would make you an Innocent to them, right?"_ asked Logan.

"_Maybe,"_ said Chris,_ "Why?"_

"_Because if they think she's an Innocent and don't attack right away, Rogue can talk to them. Maybe that would give us a chance to talk to them, and we could explain."_ Logan explained.

"_Would it work?" _I asked Chris, torn. Part of me wanted him to say yes, the other no. If he said yes, we might be able to move back in with the sisters and help save Wyatt and defeat Pyro. But if he said yes, I would also be in a lot of danger, facing all three sisters by myself.

"_We would be with you,"_ Logan said privately to me, catching my thoughts, while Chris was thinking my question over.

"_It might,"_ he said, _"Though you would have to be sent to them by a spell. They might not trust you if I let you borrow my powers. But that means only they could send you back unless I orbed in to get you."_

"_You would be in danger if I called you,"_ I told him, shaking my head._ "I'll do it. I have to."_

"_Are you sure?" _asked Chris,_ "You'd be alone with them. Logan and I would be in danger if we came with you at first."_

"_I'm sure. I won't be alone. All of us are a part of each other now. We can still talk like this." _I said, more confidently then I felt. But I felt my resolve harden, and I knew that this was something I had to do.

"_Okay,"_ said Chris, _"Just give me a few minutes to make up the spell."_ I nodded, and Chris started to mumble to himself, making up a spell.

Paige's POV

Phoebe and I were in her room. Piper had gone to make some tea. Phoebe, Piper and I all had little bags with two of each potion that we made in it. Just in case. Leo had gone Up There with Wyatt. We all figured that Wyatt needed to be out of harm's way right now. Chris wouldn't be able to get Wyatt while he was with Leo and the other Elders. Right now Phoebe and I were quiet, waiting for Piper to get back so we could talk about the prophecy, try to figure out what it meant. Leo had written it down for us before he took Wyatt Up There.

"It's still just so hard to believe they would do this," said Phoebe. "I mean, Chris was a whitelighter."

"I know honey," I said, feeling the same way.

I had actually been starting to get a little closer to Chris. All of us had been, except for Leo. I guess Leo had been right all along. Suddenly swirling white lights, but not orbs, appeared next to the bed. I looked at Phoebe, who looked just as confused as I probably did. We both took the mega knockout potion and the normal knockout potion out of our little bags and held them at the ready, standing up.

Piper opened the door and came in with a tray with three cups of tea. "What the -" she said. She put down the tray to free her hands. It didn't seem like a demon, but it might have been. If it was a demon Piper would freeze it; no reason to waste our potions on a demon. When the lights faded, I saw Rogue standing there.

"You?" demanded Piper.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, angry at seeing her again. She turned to each of us with her gloved hands at shoulder length in a gesture of surrender.

"Look, I don't have any other powers then mine, and I don't have any weapons. I just want to talk." she looked at each of us beseechingly. "Please?"

I looked at Piper over Rogue's shoulder who nodded slightly. Phoebe and I put our hands down, which had been poised to throw the potions, though we didn't let go of the vials.

"How did you get here?" asked Piper.

"Chris sent me with a spell," she said, turning to Piper, putting her hands down slowly, "He thought you would attack him if he orbed me here."

"He was right," said Piper.

"And you didn't take his powers?" I asked.

"No," said Rogue, turning to me, "He sent me with a one-way spell. We just wanna talk to you."

"Phoebe?" I asked. She would be able to tell if Rogue was lying. Phoebe looked closely at Rogue.

"If she's lying, I can't sense it," she said.

"I'm not," said Rogue, "We just want a truce,"

"Oh, after all you did to us?" said Piper, "You lied to us, all of you. You know a powerful demon on a first name basis. There is a prophecy about you that Leo thinks means you're a threat to Wyatt. How do you expect us to trust any of you?"

"I know how it looks, but we just want a chance to explain." said Rogue "Everything we've done will make sense if you'll just let us listen."

"How are we supposed to trust even that?" I asked. This could all be some part of a bigger plan.

"It's not, and I can prove it," said Rogue.

"How?" asked Phoebe.

"By letting you cast a truth spell on me," said Rogue, "But on one condition, alter the spell so I don't have to answer every question asked, like the demon had to."

"And why should we do that?" asked Piper.

"Through our telepathic connection, I've gained Future knowledge from Chris," said Rogue, "But there are some things it's dangerous for you to know. It could change the Future in really bad ways if you knew everything about it. There are some things you're not supposed to know about."

"What do you think?" I asked Phoebe and Piper.

"I vote we give her the unaltered truth spell," said Piper.

"How about we change it so the only questions she can't answer are ones that give away Future information?" asked Phoebe, "That way she can't not answer the questions, but she won't give away Future information."

We were all quiet for a moment. "Okay," said Piper.

"Alright," I said.

"I'll alter the spell," said Phoebe. "Let's go to the attic."

"After you," said Piper to Rogue, suspicion clear on her face.

Rogue walked out of the room with Piper behind her, me behind Piper, and Phoebe behind me. When we got to the attic, Rogue sat down in a wooden chair, looking nervous. I looked at her eyes and saw that her irises were dilating again. I wanted to ask her why they were doing that, but I didn't. I would ask after we cast the truth spell.

Phoebe went to the Book and turned to the page with the truth spell on it. She took out a pen and pad and quickly wrote down an alteration. "Done," she said after about a minute.

Piper and walked over to her, and together the three of us chanted the spell.

**"Let Rogue now tell the truth  
****We cast a spell upon this youth  
****No secret let there be  
****Unless we ask about the Future unknowingly.  
****Until the counter spell is said****  
Let no truth be left unsaid."**

I looked at Rogue. She glowed golden for a second before turning back to her original color. I had a feeling this would be a long conversation. I grabbed three chairs, and put them down in front of Rogue. Piper, Phoebe and I sit down.

Rogue had a lot of explaining to do, and a lot to clarify. I didn't know about Piper and Phoebe, but I still didn't really trust her. I hoped that this would solve that problem, and we might finally find out what was going on.

**A/N: So, there you have it. Rogue will be questioned under truth spell. But, as with anything else in magic, there is a loophole. Can any of you guess what it is? Also, the prophecy is VERY IMPORTANT!! It is a key plot point in the fic. So have a guess, try to figure out what it means. I'll tell you if you're close or not, so have a guess. Oh, and REVIEW!**


	13. Traps

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men.**

**I don't have anything to say except, enjoy!**

Rogue's POV

I felt an airy feeling flow through me, like stress was vanishing from my body. I felt like nothing would be better then to answer all the sisters questions.

"_Rogue, get a hold on yourself,"_ said Logan's mind voice, which sounded scared. Why would he be scared? I was fine.

"_The spell's making you lower your guard,"_ said Chris sternly,_"Think about Wyatt."_

Wyatt! I felt a rush of panic as I realized how vulnerable I had been for those few seconds. The sisters could have asked me anything, and I would have answered. I could have destroyed the Future.

"_You good, kid?"_ asked Logan.

"_Yeah.",_I answered, feeling more like myself, but the airy feeling was still there._ "How do I keep control?"_

"_Just remember what you have to do,"_ said Chris,_ "Focus."_

Focus. Okay. I focused on the sisters sitting in front of me. They all looked calmer, but just slightly. Piper looked fiercest, like she thought I was setting a trap. Phoebe looked cautious and slightly nervous. Paige looked determined. I swallowed; my mouth feeling suddenly dry.

"Why do your eyes keep doing that?" asked Paige, "Dilating."

"_Chris? Logan?"_ I asked, wondering whether I should answer or not. I knew that whatever I said would come out the truth.

"_Be as truthful as you can,"_ said Chris, _"It'll make any lies more believable." _

"_Lies?"_ asked Logan, _"They cast a truth spell."_

"_There's always a loophole somewhere,"_ said Chris, _"I just need to find it."_

"My eyes dilate whenever I talk to Chris or Logan with our mental connection," said, looking at the sisters to see their reactions. Phoebe looked like she might have suspected that all along. Paige and Piper looked less then happy. I told this to Chris and Logan.

"_Can you send us a picture?"_ asked Chris, _"Show us what you see?"_

"_Like a video feed?"_ I asked.

"_Exactly."_ said Chris. I focused on my connection to Chris and Logan and showed them what I saw. I felt both of their awe, and smiled inside.

"So they're listening to everything we say?" asked Piper.

"Yes." I said. The word popped out as soon as I opened my mouth. I saw Piper tense up in fury, and Phoebe and Paige looked angry too, like they were being spied on.

"What is Chris's connection to Wyatt?" asked Paige, tension crackling through her voice.

"_Think of the Future!"_ said Logan suddenly. I did, thinking how Chris was Wyatt's brother.

I opened my mouth. "Future consequences," I said, and hid my smile of relief.

"_The loophole,"_ said Logan, _"If the answer has the Future in it she doesn't have to answer."_

"_And truth is only what you believe is true."_ said Chris, and I felt his mental nod. _"So whenever you don't want to answer a question, think of the Future."_

"How could that have consequences?" demanded Phoebe.

"Future--" I started to say, but Piper cut me off.

"What do you want with Wyatt?" asked Piper.

"_Chris?"_ I said, not knowing how to answer. I couldn't tell them that Wyatt turns Evil, they wouldn't want anything to do with me. They might not believe me, even under truth spell.

"_To save him from Evil,"_ he said quickly, _"Say we want to save him from Evil."_

"We want to save Wyatt from Evil," I said, happy that my words didn't betray me. I was afraid the truth spell would have made me answer something else.

"_Why'd it work?" _asked Logan.

"_The truth is never black and white,"_ sad Chris, _"You can rearrange words to mean almost anything while still giving an honest answer."_

"_Handy."_said Logan, his version of a complement. I felt Chris' mental smile.

"You don't wanna hurt him?" asked Piper suspiciously.

"We never did," I said, "We just want to protect him."

"Why?" asked Piper, "Why is he so important to you? You don't even know him."

"He's important to me because he's important to Chris," I said, covering my mouth in horror when I realized what I was saying. It was too late. The damage was done.

"Why is he important to Chris?" asked Paige.

"And why do you even care about Chris?" asked Phoebe, "You only met him a day ago."

I felt like my world was spinning out of control. How was I supposed to answer this?_ "Focus!"_ said Logan, _"Don't mess this up, kid. You can fix it."_

"_Think of the Future," _said Chris, _"Just tell them that Wyatt and I were very close."_

"Chris and Wyatt were close." I said, "And I care about Chris because of the mental connection."

"What do you mean?" asked Phoebe.

"When Logan, Chris, and I made the mental connection we showed each other our memories." I paused. I was revealing this on my own. Should I really be trusting the sisters with this? I looked at them, and decided to continue. "I saw the Future, and I saw what Chris went through. I know why he wants to save Wyatt, and Logan and I both have to help him. All three of us are so interlinked with our minds that we'd be willing to do anything to help one another."

"Why didn't you get rid of the connection after you saw each others memories?" asked Paige.

"And why did you show each other your memories?" asked Piper.

"We showed each other our memories so we could trust each other. After we did, we couldn't get rid of the connection. We joined minds. If we got rid of it, it would be like losing part of ourselves." I said, just letting the words come out, and realizing that they were true. If I lost my connection to Chris or Logan, I wouldn't be able to handle it. Part of me would die.

"_It won't come to that,"_ said Chris firmly, _"We'll find a way."_

"_I'm not going anywhere, kid,"_ said Logan, and I felt better for their reassurances.

"What about the prophecy?" asked Paige.

"Huh?" I asked, momentarily confused.

"Leo said the Elders had a prophecy about you that means you could be a threat to Wyatt." said Piper.

I felt hurt, but I ignored the feeling as I felt Chris ask a question._"Did they write it down?"_ asked Chris.

"Did you write it down?" I asked, "Chris wants to see it."

Phoebe, Paige, and Piper looked at each other. They somehow reached an agreement, because Phoebe took out a folded up piece of paper. She held it out to me. "Leo wrote it down for us," she said.

"Chris doesn't know anything about the prophecy?" asked Piper as I took the folded sheet.

"No," I said. I opened up the paper and showed it to Chris and Logan through our connection, along with reading it to myself.

_'The one who is alone with iron allies will come_  
_And she will be both old and young,  
__Suspects are a farce The true enemy is of other making  
__She will change the Past and all that follows  
__Projecting her wish onto the world of the Twice Blessed.  
__And she must choose her path  
__Though she will have hidden aid  
__And will seem to be a Rogue  
__Though her heart is as pure as her mark of shame.'_

I blinked, confused. What did that mean? _"What the hell does that mean?"_ asked Logan.

"What does Chris think it means?" asked Phoebe.

"I'm not sure yet." I said.

"_Iron allies,"_ said Chris,mulling things over._ "Could that be you, Logan?"_

"_Nah,"_ said Logan, _"My claws are made of adamantium, not iron."_

"_The next part,"_ I said,_ "It means the sisters would suspect us, but that the enemy is someone else."_

"_Got to," _said Chris.

"_The part about other making, could it mean Pyro?"_ asked Logan.

"_Or that Pyro is working with the enemy?"_ I asked.

"_I'm not sure,"_ said Chris. _"But the next line makes sense. She will change the Past. Past with a capital 'P'. That means this timeline, so Rogue is going to change something in the timeline."_

"_What about hidden aid, and choosing my path?"_ I asked.

"_I don't know about hidden aid, but everyone has to choose their path sometime."_ said Logan with a mental shrug.

"_What's your mark of shame?"_ Chris asked me.

I thought about it. _"I'm not really sure. Maybe my gloves?"_

"_That doesn't make sense,"_ said Logan.

"_Logan's right. Whatever it is, it's something permanent."_ said Chris.

"_I just don't know." _I said, feeling weary. This whole situation sucked.

"Well?" I heard the spoken voice of a very impatient Piper. I snapped back, focusing once more on the sisters.

I sighed. "Could Chris and Logan just come here?" I asked. It would make things a lot easier then they were now, and maybe it would help close the breach between us and the sisters.

Piper, Phoebe and Paige looked at each other. "Can we trust them?" asked Piper.

"Ask Chris and Logan what they would do if they came here," Phoebe told me. She turned to Piper, "She'll answer honestly, and then we'll decide."

I asked. _"We would just talk, no magic."_ said Chris.

"_Unless they used it on us first,"_ said Logan grimly.

I told their answers to the sisters. Phoebe nodded. "I'm okay with it. We need to work out the prophecy." she turned to her sisters, "Paige? Piper?"

"I guess I'm good too," said Paige.

"Call them." said Piper. I felt nervous, noticing that the sisters had never let go of their potion vials. Piper looked battle-tense, and Paige looked grim. I felt nervous and swallowed.

"You won't hurt them?" I asked, wondering whether them coming was such a good idea.

"We won't." said Piper.

"Not unless they attack us first." said Paige.

"They won't," I said, as I reached out to Chris and Logan. _"They said you can come, but be careful."_

The next second I felt Chris and Logan's recognition, and I felt them orb. White lights appeared in the room, and when the lights faded I saw Chris and Logan standing next to me.

"_Hello again,"_ I tried to joke as I stood up, but it didn't feel right. I gave Chris the prophecy and he read it in silence. I could sense him trying to figure it out. I looked at the sisters and saw that they were all glaring at Chris, who was promptly ignoring them. I still felt his pain at their anger.

"_Wonder why Leo's not here,"_ Logan thought to me, privately so as not to disturb Chris.

"_He's Up There, with Wyatt."_ I responded. Logan gave me a mental snort.

"So, what do you think it means?" asked Phoebe.

"_Rogue, don't answer their questions unless they're directed at you,"_ said Chris, _"Logan and I can still lie."_

I felt Logan's mental smirk, and had to work to keep from smiling. "We're not sure," said Logan, back in business mode, "What do_you_ think it means?"

"We thought you had a guess." said Paige. She looked like she was starting to get angry.

"Yeah," said Chris, "But prophecies are tricky. Nothing's for sure."

"We thought you wanted to come here so you could tell us what you knew about the prophecy," accused Piper.

Through my connection, I felt Chris hold in a sigh. The sisters were still looking at him like he was a threat.

"He's not a threat to you," I said, the truth spell still in effect, "He would protect you with his life."

"_Rogue!"_ Chris mind-spoke in panic.

"What?" said Piper.

I followed my instinct and kept talking. "You have to trust him, he'd do anything for all of you."

"_What are you doing?"_ demanded Chris. _"Are you trying to blow my cover?"_

"_Lay off, Chris,"_ said Logan. _"She's getting the sisters to trust you, so shut up and act like a good little witchlighter."_

I felt Chris's chagrin, but he stopped panicking. "Why are you telling us this?" asked Phoebe.

"Because I'm still under the truth spell. I'm being completely honest with you, the spell wouldn't let me do anything else. And this is the only chance I have of getting you to trust us." I took a step closer to the sisters. "All of us would be willing to risk ourselves to help you and Wyatt. Please, believe us."

I looked into the sisters eyes and saw that finally, their mistrust was fading. They believed me because magic wouldn't let me lie. They looked at Logan and Chris, and their gazes softened.

"Okay," said Piper with a nod, "We trust you."

"All of you," said Phoebe.

"Just one thing," said Paige, "If we're gonna work together to figure out the prophecy, as I assume we are, you guys can't hide things from us with your telepathy. You have to be open with us. We won't stick into your business--"

"-- at least not too much," said Phoebe lightly.

"--But you also can't keep non-Future related secrets from us. We have to work_ together._ Okay?"

I nodded. "Okay." I sent a relieved mental voice to Chris and Logan. _"It worked!" I _felt Logan's mental smirk, and also a proud smile for me.

"_You did good," _he said.

"_Thank you,"_ said Chris, and the feeling he put into those two words was of such hope and gratitude that I didn't know what to say. I was overwhelmed by his emotions.

"Now can you take the truth spell off her?" asked Logan.

"Oh! Right," said Phoebe. She took a deep breath and then said dramatically, "The counter spell is said."

I felt a warmth as the truth spell left me. I felt more aware, and better overall. But that was a weird counter spell.

"What kind of counter spell was that?" demanded Piper, looking at Phoebe wide-eyed.

"Well we needed a spell in a hurry and I wasn't gonna waste time making up a long counter spell," said Phoebe defensively. Chris smiled, and had to struggle to contain his laughter. Paige and I smiled, and even Logan was wearing a small grin. The ice had been broken; Logan, Chris and I had the sisters on our side again.

Chris's POV

"So, what do we do about the prophecy?" asked Logan, and the mood immediately turned somber again.

I ran my hand through my hair, thinking. "Maybe the Seer?" I asked out loud. I was really going to try not to hide anything more then I had to from Piper, Phoebe, and Paige from now on. Unless I really had too.

"Can we trust her?" asked Logan.

"No, but she's our best bet right now," I said.

"A demon?" asked Paige.

"A contact," I said, seeing her suspicion reenter her eyes, "It's the best way to find out what's going on with the demons. She doesn't know anything. She just thinks I'm betraying you, so she helps me."

Thankfully, I noticed that thanks to Rogue's confession under truth spell, the sisters didn't look suspicious of me. At least not too much.

"Playing the double agent?" asked Phoebe.

"Best way to get news," I said, "Even Elders have demon contacts sometimes." Phoebe nodded, digesting this news for later.

"Is she strong?" asked Piper.

"Yes," I said, "And I don't want us to kill her if we can avoid it. She's one of the only reliable Seers left in the Underworld."

"Well, we're coming with you," said Piper.

"No," said Logan, coming to my defense. "She thinks he's betraying you. He has to go alone."

Piper looked like she was about to argue, but didn't. "Okay," she said after an awkward pause. "Just take these potions with you. She probably has a darklighter crossbow somewhere." and she handed me the small bag filled with the potions they had made for Logan, Rogue, and I.

"Thanks," I said, wishing I had been able to complete what I wanted to say. _Thanks, mom. _I sighed and orbed to the Seer's lair, the prophecy folded in my hand and the potions in my pocket.

I reformed in her lair, and looked around. She wasn't standing by her pool. "Seer?" I called. There was no answer for a moment, and then she shimmered in.

"Sorry," she said, not sounding sorry at all, "I was with a client." She sounded so human, it was unusual.

"You do prophecies?" I asked, and she nodded.

"I do. But they're never as accurate as a premonition. Prophecies usually have hidden meanings." she said. I knew she would want something in return for reading the prophecy.

"You'll be rewarded," I said as I walked over to her and handed her the prophecy. "What does this mean?"

She took the prophecy and read it quickly. "I'm not sure." she said, and I gave her a threatening glare. "Prophecies are tricky," she said again, turning around and walking to a shelf in her layer, her back towards me.

She looked like she was looking for something. Suddenly she turned around and I saw a darklighter crossbow in her hand with an arrow already inside it. I rolled to my left and crouched, dodging the arrow she fired. I reached into my pocket and cocked my arm, ready to throw the knockout potion at her when I felt a fiery pain in my shoulder. I gasped in pain, dropped the potion in reflex, and grabbed at my shoulder with my other arm. I turned around and I felt another pain in my arm, though not as severe as the first one. I fell onto my side, onto the shoulder without the arrow in it. I was getting dizzy. It felt like poison, but not the usual darklighter kind, had been on the arrow.

"_Rogue! Logan!"_ I cried out with my mind. I heard them answer, but I couldn't recognize what they were saying. I felt so dizzy, so tired. I tried to reach for another potion in my pocket, but someone put their hand in my pocket and took out the potion bag. I tried to sit up, and couldn't. I fell into blackness.

Seer's POV

The whitelighter fell unconscious, and I turned to the demon I'd made the deal with. He said his name was Gorgog.

"Are you sure this is a smart plan?" I asked, "The Charmed Ones will come to reclaim him. And to vanquish you."

"I nearly killed them before, they're no threat to me." said Gorgog, looking down at the whitelighter. "But that's not your concern," he said, turning to me, "Figure out that prophecy. If you do, the Twice Blessed Child will soon be under our control."

"It tells of the Child's weakness?" I asked, unimpressed but curious. Demons tried to kill the Twice Blessed every other week.

"It does," said Gorgog. "And my master needs to know what it is. Find out." he turned back to the whitelighter. He snapped his fingers and a lower level demon appeared. "Take the whitelighter to the chamber, but leave his jacket here." he said, and by the way he said chamber, I knew he meant torture room. "You can have fun with him when the witches are dead."

The demon bowed and shimmered out with the whitelighter. Gorgog turned to me. "Send the Charmed Ones to me, but only if they have a girl with white and brown hair." he ordered.

"Sure thing," I said casually, "As long as they don't kill me first." I knew they wouldn't. I'd seen my death, and it wasn't them who killed me. Gorgog didn't know that though, and I wanted to be sure I got my reward. "This'd better be worth my while." I said.

He smiled evilly. "It will be." he flicked his lighters, and flamed out. For a moment, I felt a sense of regret. That whitelighter had been interesting. It was almost sad to think about what Gorgog wanted to do to him. Maybe I'd help him if Gorgog bothered me too much. I shrugged. Maybe. I threw down the crossbow I'd been holding, and returning to my pool, seeing what was to come.

Logan's POV

"_Rogue! Logan!" _I heard Chris's metal scream in my mind and jumped up, my claws coming out on instinct. I regained control and retracted them, and walked over to Paige with Rogue close behind me.

"Chris is in trouble orb us to him now," I said, holding out my hand._"Keep fighting,"_ I sent to him, _"Don't stop fighting."_

"_We're coming, Chris,"_ said Rogue,_"Just hold on."_

"I can't orb if I don't know where he is," she said.

"What?" I said, my voice coming out as a snarl. "He's been attacked." I felt sympathy pain in my shoulder and arm where I knew Chris had been hurt.

"He's badly hurt, you have to orb us to him," said Rogue. Suddenly we both felt his mind go silent.

"No," whispered Rogue, afraid he was dead. I was too. I reached out with my mind, and felt a twitch. Not of thought, but of pain.

"Unconscious," I told her. I turned to Paige, "Orb us now!"

"I have to find out where he is first," she said walking to the map in the attic and picking up a crystal, "I'll scry for him."

I paced restlessly, letting my claws come out. I felt like I had to do _something_! What Rogue said before was right. I wouldn't be able to handle it if Chris died. Rogue was picking up potions from around the room. When she was done she stood, anxiously swaying from side to side.

"Dammit, can't you go any faster?!" I exploded after a minute.

"Scrying takes time," said Piper, but she looked worried.

I paced faster, feeling useless. Through my connection with Chris I felt that pain was spreading throughout his body. It was excruciating and I knew it must be some type of poison. Why couldn't they _hurry_?

Suddenly Paige stood up, "Got him," she said. Rogue and I walked over to her, reaching her first. I took Paige's hand, and Piper and Phoebe took Rogue's and my other hand.

"Orb!" I said, and she did.

We reformed in a cave with a pool of water in the middle of it. The water was covered by fog, and there were several shelves filled with various potions, ingredients and weapons. But I didn't care. I inhaled, smelling the air. I smelled poison, Chris's blood, and the scent I'd come to associate with demons. I also smelled Pyro. I inhaled again, focusing on Chris's blood scent. It was weak. That meant he wasn't here, or at least not in this room. I let go of Paige's and Piper's hands.

"_Chris?"_ Rogue reached out with her mind. I sniffed the air twice, following the smell of Chris's blood. I was dimly aware of the sisters and Rogue spreading out to look for Chris.

"Where is he?" asked Paige softly.

"Chris?" Phoebe tried to yell and whisper at the same time.

I crouched on the ground, following the scent on blood. I saw a small pool of blood. I put my two first fingers in it and sniffed. Chris's blood. I followed the trail, which led to a bloody jacket, which had Chris's smell. The smell ended there. Suddenly the truth dawned on me.

"It's a trap," I said softly, not sure if there wasn't anyone else in the cavern aside from Rogue, the sisters and I. I extended my claws and walked back to Paige. "Orb us away. Now." I said.

I looked around for the other sisters, but they were at the far end of the room with Rogue._ "Rogue, we have to get out of here, now."_

I saw Rogue tell the sisters my message. I turned to Paige. "Come." I said as I grabbed her wrist being careful to avoid cutting her with my claws. She didn't protest, maybe she sensed the danger. Paige, Rogue, Piper, Phoebe, and I started to walk towards each other, when a demon shimmered in in front of us.

I let go of Paige and ran towards the she-demon, who had Chris's smell on her. I jumped, preparing to let my claws slide through her chest, when she shimmered out. I rolled as I landed on the ground and stood up, alert, listening to as much as I could.

The demon shimmered in about twelve feet away from Phoebe, who she was closest to. Phoebe let out a sound of surprise, and levitated, kicking at the she-demon who was wearing a purple cape. The demon caught Phoebe's foot and pulled her down from the air. I was running flat out towards the demon.

"_Rogue, get Piper's powers!"_ I managed to send to her before I got a rush of adrenaline in my veins. Rogue had to be protected.

The demon had Phoebe on the ground flat on her back, and she held a long knife to Phoebe's throat, pressing hard enough into it to draw blood. She was crouching very close to Phoebe's face on the ground. She gave me a glare, and I stopped running. I smelled around, looking for a scent of wood, so I could throw something at her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," she said smugly. Piper's hands had been raised, ready to blow up the demon, but she couldn't without risking blowing up Phoebe. I felt pain throughout my entire body, and felt Rogue's acknowledgment of the same thing. Chris was getting worse.

"_Rogue, borrow Paige's powers and orb the demon away." _I said. I felt Rogue touch Paige, and heard her whisper, "Demon," but the power wasn't working.

"Sorry," said the demon, not sounding sorry at all. "Took an anti-orb potion earlier. Now I believe your looking for a whitelighter, right? Tall, brown haired, annoying, I think his name was Chris?"

"What do you want?" I asked, wanting to tear her limb from limb as my anger, fear and pain pushed to the forefront of my mind.

She smiled. "A deal."

**Ok people what'd you think? Chris gets captured, the Seer has Phoebe at knife point, and the sisters now trust Rogue and Logan. A good chapter, no? Tell me what you think of the chappie, and what you think will happen next. Review!**


	14. Pyro

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. If you don't know that by now, I'm going to have to wack you on the head with a bright blue hammer.**

**WARNING: In this chapter Chris gets tortured. You're just gonna have to deal with it.**

Chris's POV

I came to because a burst of pain rippling throughout my body. I curled myself into a ball, covered my head and squeezed my eyes shut. It was by sheer luck I managed not to scream. It seemed like there was electricity crackling throughout my entire frame, from my bones to every skin cell, throughout my very being. Suddenly the pain stopped, and my body relaxed slightly. I lay there, panting, and I opened my eyes. The first thing I saw was a purple crystal in front of my face, and the point of a staff above the crystal. I must have been in a crystal cage. I lifted my head with some effort, feeling the pounding in my ears and the strain in my neck. I looked up the bronze staff, and saw Pyro holding it lazily at his side.

"You," I managed to say, and I reached for Logan and Rogue's minds to tell them what was happening. I felt nothing. I couldn't hear them! The crystal suddenly glowed, but I ignored it.

I reached out again, stating to feel panicky, when Pyro put his staff through the cage and touched my shoulder with it. I felt the electricity running throughout my body, overloading my senses, locking me in pain. I curled up again and clenched my teeth, trying not to scream or cry in rage and pain. I felt my nails dig into my palm and draw blood. The pain stopped, and I lay on the ground, spent. It hurt just to breathe.

"They can't hear you," said Pyro smugly as he drew his staff out of the cage. "But they sure as hell feel your pain. This was what Wyatt used against telepaths, remember?"

I did remember. Bianca had told me that Wyatt had discovered a spell that, when said over a crystals, blocked telepathic connections. Bianca also told me that every time the telepaths tried to communicate with their minds, the crystals would glow, letting the captor know. Pyro must have cast the spell on the crystals that formed my cage.

"You won't get anything by killing me," I panted, steeling myself for more pain. "I won't tell you anything."

Pyro laughed. "You think I care about you?" he said, "This is just to get to Rogue and Logan... but it's also fun."

I felt a surge of hate through me. Most demons didn't torture unless they were angry at the victim. This was a _human_. And there was no way in hell he'd hurt Rogue or Logan! I wouldn't let him. My new hatred gave me strength, and I rolled up and lunged towards the cage, using my telekinetic magic to push at the cage as well. I was thrown backwards by the magical energy of the cage, and landed on the floor. The air left my lungs, but I managed to take a breath. I got up again and reached for his heart with my powers. I would crush it. I looked at him, but he only laughed. My powers weren't working. He stuck his staff through the cage again and jabbed it in my stomach. This time I couldn't stop my screams as I fell to the floor, clutching my stomach.

"Where're your powers?" Pyro taunted as he pulled back his staff, and I was able to breathe. I lay on the ground, unable to move. "That poison in the arrow the Seer shot at you did more then knock you out, witchlighter." I shivered. He _knew_! "It sucked your powers dry and turned it into a venom. I used a spell, and took in your powers. You're mortal now."

I felt the truth in his words, and I felt despair that hurt more then his staff. I was alone. I was powerless. Rogue and Logan couldn't hear me. No one knew where I was, and they wouldn't find me until I was near dead. Then Pyro would kill me after he killed them. Sensing my mood, Pyro laughed again, and used my own powers to fling me into the barrier of the cage. The energy of the cage rippled through me, sending more pain through my ravaged nerves. I fell to the ground, landing on my stomach.

"I could do this forever, witchlighter," said Pyro as he used my powers to squeeze my heart. I couldn't breathe! I clutched at my chest, trying to relieve the pressure inside me. Just when I though I would die he stopped, and I could breathe again. "I wonder why it's taking so long for them to get here," he said thoughtfully, "They must like you less then I thought."

I couldn't answer as he touched me on the chest with his staff. I couldn't hold back my screams.

Paige's POV

The demon looked up at us, her dagger still pressing against Phoebe's throat. "What kind of deal?" asked Piper. Suddenly Rogue screamed, and she fell to the ground, clenching her teeth together. I turned to Logan, and though he didn't fall to the ground, he fell to his knees, shaking like he was being electrocuted.

"That," said the Seer smugly.

"Whatever you're doing, stop it!" I yelled at her, "Otherwise, I'll --"

"It's not me doing it," said the Seer with a smile, "Although it does have some interesting side effects."

"What does?" said Piper fiercely. I glanced worriedly back at Rogue and Logan. They looked like they were in serious pain.

"Gorgog has your whitelighter," said the Seer. "I want Gorgog dead, but don't have enough power to do it. You don't either. Here's my deal; you don't kill me, we kill Gorgog and save your little whitelighter and you grant me immunity."

"You want immunity?" I said, "Then let go of Phoebe and stop whatever is happening to them." I pointed to Rogue and Logan.

"I'll let go of your sister only if you don't vanquish me." said the Seer, "It's not like I can trust you. You're Good."

I looked at Piper, who gave a slight nod. I nodded back. "Fine." said Piper. The Seer sheathed her knife and moved away from Phoebe. Phoebe stood up and went over to Rogue, looking her over and reaching out with her empath power.

"She's in a lot of pain, almost like electricity is flowing through her." she said, "But I don't understand what's causing it. It has to be demonic."

"It's Gorgog," said the Seer, "He's playing with your whitelighter."

"You mean torturing him," I said, and the Seer shrugged one shoulder.

"He's a demon, what do you expect?" she said. "He got a fancy bronze staff and some purple crystals."

"Yeah, but why doesn't he orb out, and what's happening to Rogue and Logan?" said Phoebe.

"Your whitelighter was shot with a darklighter arrow with a new type of poison." said the Seer. "It takes away his power and transforms it into solid venom. Gorgog said a spell over the venom that allowed him to absorb the whitelighter's powers. As for the mutants, Gorgog said he had a telepathic connection with them. If the connection is strong, they'll both feel whatever pain the whitelighter feels."

"Can't they block it?" I asked. Rogue looked like she was getting paler by the minute. Logan hadn't stopped shaking yet, and he had fallen onto the ground.

"Only if they destroy the connection, but then they run the risk of destroying their minds." the Seer said, "If their connection is as close as I think it is, if you break it now you could kill them, or drive them to insanity."

"How do we save them?" asked Piper.

"Well, I made a potion that will put them into enchanted sleep. It'll stop the pain." she said, moving to get something from one of her shelves.

"How did you know to make it?" said Piper suspiciously. I agreed with her.

"Uh, hello?" said the Seer, looking insulted, "I'm a Seer. I _see_things." She picked up two vials and tossed them to Phoebe, who caught them.

"How can we trust you?" I told her.

"Because I'm the only one you have right now," said the Seer, "Pour the vials over them and they'll fall asleep."

"And how do we wake them up?" asked Phoebe.

"If their connection to the whitelighter is blocked, all they have to do to wake up is reconnect with him. The potion is supposed to stop pain. Don't worry," said the Seer, maybe sensing our mistrust and hesitation. "I got it from a witch."

I guessed that that witch was probably dead now. "Pour the potion," I told Phoebe. She did. Logan and Rogue immediately fell asleep, the pain leaving their faces. The Seer had been telling the truth... about this at least.

"Now," she said with a grin, "Gorgog is going to be distracted by the whitelighter, so if you blast him," she pointed to Piper, "And you orb the crystals around him," she pointed to me, "It should be enough to hold him. The blast gets his attention and then he's locked inside his own cage."

"It's never that easy," I said.

"And how do we know you're not working for him?" said Piper, "Maybe that's why you gave Rogue and Logan the potion, to get them out of the way."

"They're still alive," said the Seer, insulted, "_And_ I took away their pain. Except for the little dagger thing in the beginning, I have done everything you asked. All I want is to kill a demon that's pissing me off, and you get all suspicious."

"I can't sense any lies," admitted Phoebe.

"Fine." I said, cutting off what looked like rant, "Piper and I can handle it."

"Are you sure?" said Phoebe.

"Yeah," said Piper, "You stay with Logan and Rogue, and make sure they're okay."

"Alright," said Phoebe. She reached into Rogue's pocket and took out the potions Rogue had gathered. "Take some of these with you."

Piper and I went over to her and took one of each potion. If Pyro had Chris's powers, we could take them away using the potion we had made for Chris. The knockout and the mega-knockout potions should work on him too.

"You stay here," I told the Seer. I walked over to Piper and focused on orbing to Gorgog.

It worked. We reformed in a cavern. We saw Gorgog standing relaxedly in front of a purple crystal cage, his back to us, holding a bronze staff which was halfway inside it. There were screams coming from the cage, and I saw a rolled up body twitching on the floor, trapped inside the cage. Chris. Pyro pulled his staff out of the cage and Chris stopped screaming. He lay on the floor unmoving.

I took out the potion that would take away Chris's powers and threw it at Pyro's back. It broke and he turned to face us. Blue and white lights came out of his chest, and flew into the spare vial Piper was holding up.

"About time," growled Pyro, throwing aside his staff, "Where's Rogue?"

"Away from you," said Piper as she raised her hands and blasted Pyro in the shoulder.

He let out a cry of rage as he flicked his lighters and sent fire at us. I grabbed Piper's hand and orbed us to the other side of the tavern. Pyro was still flaming where we had been, and now he was laughing. He thought he roasted us. Sick bastard.

"Crystals, circle!" I called, and the purple crystals surrounding Chris orbed out and reformed around Pyro. He turned towards my voice in shock.

"That shouldn't have worked," he said softly, so that I barely heard him. "That bitch betrayed me!" He flicked his lighters and tried to burn through the cage, but the crystals held. "You think this can hold me for long?" he called.

"Long enough," I said. After giving him another glance to make sure he was trapped inside the cage, Piper and I ran over to Chris.

"Chris?" I asked as I kneeled down next to him. He lay perfectly still, and he was breathing shallowly. There didn't seem to be any physical wounds. The staff must have hurt him internally. Chris was sweating and looked very pale. His palms were bleeding slightly were it seemed his nails had dug into his hand.

"He's hurt badly," I said, looking up at Piper.

"We have to get him to Leo," she said. "Leo!" she called out, "Leo!"

Leo didn't come. "You think that sorry excuse for an Elder would come down for _him_?" taunted Pyro as he continued to send fire at the cage. "You think he cares?"

"What's he talking about?" I whispered to Piper.

"I don't know," she said, "But this cavern must be protected, otherwise Leo would have come by now."

"Yeah but I can't orb away and leave you with him," I said, gesturing my head towards Pyro.

"I reckon if he could stick his staff through the cage, I can throw a potion," said Piper.

"Try," I said.

Piper walked up to the cage and threw the mega-knockout potion. It broke on the ground and a red smoke rose up into the air. Pyro's fires vanished and he was snoring before he hit the ground.

"That works," I muttered to myself. Piper walked back over to me. "Pyro!" I called and he appeared on the ground next to me. I put a hand on Chris and Pyro and Piper held onto my shoulder. I orbed us to the manor.

"Paige, we have to go back to Phoebe!" said Piper.

"I know," I said, "Just put Pyro in the cage and put Chris on the couch okay. Call Leo, I'll get Phoebe, Rogue, and Logan."

Piper nodded. "Okay, just hurry." I nodded and orbed out.

I reformed in the cave, where I saw that Logan and Rogue still lay sleeping with Phoebe standing over them. The Seer stood a few feet away, leaning casually against her pool.

"Paige," said Phoebe, "How'd it go?"

"You didn't kill him," the Seer sighed. "It's a pity, I was hoping you might."

"And you betrayed him, didn't you?" I asked.

"Yeah," said the Seer, "But if I hadn't, you would be dead."

"How's Chris?" asked Phoebe.

"He's hurt pretty bad, but Leo should be Healing him by now," I said to Phoebe as I walked over to her, Rogue and Logan.

"Why aren't they awake yet?" I asked the Seer.

"The whitelighter –Chris– has to open the connection to them. When he contacts them through their link, they'll wake up." shrugged the Seer.

"You'd better be right," I said as I laid a hand on Rogue and Logan. Phoebe touched my shoulder. I orbed us back to the manor.

Chris's POV

Cool comforting light seemed to fill me, like a parched man drinking water. My body felt light, safe, whole. I heard voices talking.

"Why is it taking so long?" demanded mom's voice.

"He was hurt pretty bad," said dad's voice. No, I reminded myself. Not dad, Leo. Not mom, Piper. I was in the past.

Then the memories came rushing back. Pyro torturing me with his staff, and with my own powers. I had called out to Rogue and Logan again and again, knowing it wouldn't work, hoping they would feel my warning and stay away. I realized that Leo was Healing me. I pushed away the memories and focused on the more pressing matters. Was anyone hurt? Was everyone else alright? What about Pyro, had he gotten away? Had Rogue and Logan gotten captured? With effort, I opened my eyes.

"Piper?" I asked. She had been pacing, but she moved closer to me. I ignored Leo's face to my left.

"Hey Chris, how're you doing?" she asked.

I felt my body lose it's remaining pain, and I sat up on the sofa. "Better." I said, "What happened?"

"We found you with Pyro, lying unconscious inside a crystal cage." she said, "We fought him off and took your powers out of him. We threw the mega-knockout potion we made for Logan at him and we brought him here."

"Everyone's okay?" I asked.

"Everyone's fine," she said, "But we got help from your Seer contact."

"Help?" I asked. The Seer, while strong, was unpredictable.

"Your connection with Logan and Rogue transferred the pain you were feeling onto them," said Leo. I gave him a questioning look. "Piper filled me in," he said.

"The Seer gave them a potion that put them to sleep and would block out the pain." continued Piper.

"They're still asleep?" I asked, reaching out with my mind. Their minds were blank; they were deeply asleep.

"Yeah," said Piper, "The Seer said they would wake up when you contacted them with your link."

I nodded, "What about Pyro?"

"He's in a crystal cage in the attic." said Leo, "I got new crystals from the Elders. Only one of the Charmed Ones could move one of those crystals."

I nodded, satisfied. I looked over Piper's shoulder and saw Logan and Rogue asleep on two fluffy chairs. _"Rogue?"_ I called,_"Logan?"_

I felt their minds stir, and saw them wake up._ "Chris!" _said Rogue in relief.

"_Are you okay?" _asked Logan, _"That hurt like hell."_

"_No, Leo Healed me," _I said._ "How bad was it?"_

"_It felt like there was electricity burning every nerve in my body."_said Rogue.

"_Yeah,"_I said, and then I asked the question that had been bothering me._ "Why didn't you feel me in your minds?"_

"_We were blocked," _said Logan,_ "All we felt was your pain."_

"_We tried calling out to you, but there was a barrier." _said Rogue,_ "We couldn't get through. We felt your pain and tried to talk to you, but you couldn't hear us."_

"_And we couldn't hear you." _said Logan.

"_We never would have left you," _said Rogue, catching my feelings._"We would never leave you alone."_

That was my fear, that they had left me. That they had deserted me. My weakness. Even though I didn't want them to come, I hated that feeling of aloneness. If I had never forged the connection between us, it wouldn't have mattered. But it did matter. Our minds were interlinked, and I knew that I wouldn't be able to survive if that link was broken. I would go insane.

"_I'm not going anywhere,"_ said Logan.

"_I won't leave you,"_ said Rogue.

"_You can't promise that,"_ I said after a pause. _"We're of different worlds, different times. What's going to happen when we have to leave?"_

"_We'll find a way," _said Logan.

"_Will we?"_ I asked, before breaking off the conversation. Rogue and Logan came to me from their seats.

"_We will."_ Rogue said, looking determinedly at me.

Piper and Leo stood up and looked back between Rogue, Logan and I. Then Leo said, "Look, I'm sorry I doubted all you. Piper told me about the truth spell, and I--" Leo sighed. "I'll try to trust you from now on."

It was as good as I was gonna get and the best I could hope for. I still felt angry at Leo, but I understood, at least intellectually that this Leo hadn't deserved my hatred. At least not yet. Who knew what he would become in twenty-two years? I would try to be more civil to Leo.

"Thanks, Leo." I said. Rogue nodded, and Logan curtly inclined his head.

"_Took him long enough,"_ I heard him say in his mind.

"Let's see Phoebe and Paige," said Piper, "They'll be glad to see you're okay."

Piper led us to the attic with me following her, followed by Rogue, Logan, and Leo respectively. When we entered the attic, I saw Pyro inside a green crystal cage. He was still asleep. I eyed the crystals, and saw that they were as Leo said, the strongest I'd ever seen. Phoebe and Paige saw us and we walked in to them.

"Hey, how're you all doing?" asked Phoebe.

"Better," said Logan, Rogue and I together. We caught each other's eyes and I smiled slightly. It was nice to feel so connected to them.

As we all walked further in the room, closer to Pyro, I saw that he was breathing very deeply. It was almost like he was in a coma.

"How long has he been like this?" I asked. I didn't care about him, but I needed to find out what he knew before I could vanquish him. _I_wanted to be the one to vanquish him. I would make him pay.

"Since I hit him with the potion," said Piper.

"Should that be happening?" asked Rogue.

"Well, I threw the potion that we originally made for Logan." said Piper.

"Strong potion," said Logan.

"We were worried about your healing abilities--" she started.

"But Pyro doesn't heal, so he just got a huge overdose." I finished.

"Pretty much," said Piper.

"Can you make any type of potion?" asked Logan suddenly.

"Why?" I asked, then I caught his thoughts. "You want to make a window that leads to your world."

"Not leads to it, just shows it," said Logan, "Maybe the Professor will know what's going on."

"If anyone from our world could help us, it'd be him." said Rogue.

"Well?" asked Logan.

Piper was silent. She, Paige, and Phoebe looked at each other. "We can try," said Paige.

"I'll make up the spell," said Phoebe as she took out a pen and pad, sat down, and started writing. After a few minutes she stood up and walked back to Piper and Paige.

"We need to draw the window first," I said.

"I'll help," said Rogue. She and I each took a piece of chalk and we drew the triquetra. We threw down the chalk and stepped back so we were standing next to Logan as the sisters chanted the spell.

"**Hear these words, hear the rhyme,  
****Heed the hope within our minds  
****We call upon the Power of Three  
****To show us what we wish to see."**

The triquetra glowed blue and started to spin. When it stopped and cleared, I saw the Professor looking back at me. I recognized him through Rogue's memories. His kind, intelligent eyes looked at us.

"Rogue, Logan," he said, "What happened to you? Where did you go?"

"We got thrown into an alternate world." said Logan. "One where there aren't any mutants."

"Then how are you contacting me?" asked the Professor.

"Magic, if you can believe it," said Logan.

"This is Chris, Piper, Leo, Phoebe, and Paige," said Rogue, gesturing to all of us respectively. "They've helped us.

"Are they normal humans, then?" asked the Professor.

"Actually three witches and two whitelighters," I said.

"I'm a half whitelighter," corrected Paige.

"Sorry", I said, holding back a smile.

"Whitelighter?" asked the Professor?

"Kind of like a guardian angel," said Leo.

Suddenly I felt a presence in my mind, an alien one. It was the Professor._"Get out of my head!" _ I yelled at him in mind-speech.

At the same time, I felt him enter Rogue and Logan's minds. _"Don't worry Chris, he won't hurt us,"_ said Rogue. _"He just wants to know what's going on."_

I felt both Logan and Rogue give the professor their memories and experiences of my world. They both trusted him so completely, so absolutely. But it was my nature to distrust.

"Ah," the Professor said out loud. "Now I understand."

"Huh?" asked Piper.

"I'm a telepath, Piper," said the Professor, "Logan and Rogue allowed me to see their memories of this world so far."

"Oh," said Piper. Then a thought occurred to me.

"Does that mean you know everything about me, and about my Future?" I asked out loud.

"Everything that Logan and Rogue know, I know." he said, "But don't worry, I can keep a secret."

"So, if you know everything that's happened, what do we do about Pyro?" asked Paige.

"I'm not sure," said the Professor. "That's the one thing that doesn't make sense..."

**A/N: Okay people. The Professor has a guess on how Pyro ended up the demented way he did. I'm sure right now many of you would like to slowly roast Pyro on a spit. I understand. All will be made clear by the Professor in the next chapter. Also, in the next chapter Pyro wakes up, and we find out who his master is. Dun, dun, dun! Please review! REVIEW!**


	15. A Twisted Truth

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. I wish I did, but I don't. **

**One thing I've noticed is that my hits are going down. Are you people leaving my story? Please don't. By the way, I'm giving a big thank you to, drum roll please...**

**Stoneage Woman **

**and**

**Lilmiznicky**

**For being my two most loyal and constant reviewers. (Hands both of them medals) Give 'em a round of applause! Also, I know this chapter is a little shorter then usual, so the next one will be longer.**

Chris's POV

"What do you mean?" asked Piper.

"Even with Shannon's power of opening portals, John never should have been able to come here. And also, it doesn't explain who is master is." said the Professor.

"John is..." asked Paige.

"Pyro before he came here," said Logan. Paige nodded her thanks.

"You have no idea at all who it is, Professor?" asked Rogue.

"No," sighed the Professor, "Whoever it is, it must be someone who is from this world. You must all be extra careful."

"Why can't you just get another mutant to get him back into your world?" I asked, thinking of maybe a spell. Maybe they had magic there, but just called it something else. Maybe they could use it to write spells.

"That won't work," said the Professor. I wondered if he was reading my mind. He didn't indicate whether he was eavesdropping on my thoughts. "Our powers aren't magical. If it hadn't been for the sisters spell," he gave them a nod of respect, "We might never have been able to find you at all."

"How do we stop Pyro?" asked Piper, asking the practical question. And she looked like she was afraid to know the answer.

I knew, just by looking at her face that she didn't want to kill him. Even though he tortured me, he was still human, and Piper didn't like to kill humans. She looked like she would do it if she had to, but I knew she would rather find a way to strip his powers. That was okay._I_ wanted to kill Pyro. Or at least lock him in Purgatory for a few years.

"_Calm down, Chris,"_ said Logan, catching my emotions. _"The sisters have him. He's not going anywhere."_

I gave Logan a mental nod, but it didn't quell my desire for revenge. Pyro could very well be the one who turned Wyatt evil. And he was more demon then human anyway.

"You can't stop Pyro, not with your powers." said the Professor, "He won't be immune to them, but mutation is grafted onto every cell of DNA. You won't be able to make him powerless."

"But then he'll just keep trying to come after us," I said, shaking my head. We had to do something. "What if he hurts us? Kills us? We can't take that chance." I looked at the sisters without meeting their eyes. "I think we should vanquish him."

"You mean kill him," said Paige softly.

"Paige, vanquish, destroy, kill, eliminate, they all mean the same thing. Dead is dead, whether you're a demon or not." Paige looked away. Piper and Phoebe however were looking at me as if they'd never seen me clearly before.

"You've killed mortals?" asked Piper.

I swallowed. Hating myself for saying the truth. "Yes." Piper looked away, as did Phoebe, Paige looked back to me. "And so have you. In my Future."

"_You didn't show us this,"_ accused Logan.

"_There are some things you can't show,"_ I told him, hating myself for even this small deception. _"I showed you what you needed to know about me. Some things hurt to much."_

I felt his wary acceptance, and Rogue's pity. From anyone else I would have hated it, but at this point I was just glad they still accepted me.

"No," said Piper, "We would never hurt a mortal."

"No, not on purpose you wouldn't," I said, hating myself for revealing this, for saying it. "But you will. To save your lives and to save your family's lives. You won't be given a choice."

"Who?" asked Phoebe, and she didn't need to finish the questions. Who did I kill? And who would they kill?

"In my world magic was exposed. Most mortals went to the Resistance for protection. Some fought against it. Some were fanatics, and would kill any magical being they saw. Or they tried." I said.

"You were in the Resistance?" asked Paige.

"No," I said, "The Source was after me personally. He ruled my world. I couldn't let anyone else get hurt because of me."

"So you ran away?" asked Phoebe, "Left Innocents to die?"

"No," I said, feeling hurt that she would even think that. But then, she didn't know who I was. All she knew was that I was a 'whitelighter' and even that was a lie. "I had charges. They died. I had friends. They died. Everyone I grew close to died." Except Bianca, who might be dead. If Wyatt found out about her, she would be. "The demons never stopped coming after me," I said, "I had to protect people. The demons killed those who were close to me."

"Why would the Source in the Future care about a whitelighter?" asked Paige, "What threat were you to him?"

Everyone was looking at me now. The sisters waiting for me to explain something I wasn't sure I could, and Logan, Rogue and the Professor, looking to see what would happen next. They wouldn't interfere with the sisters' questions. I didn't want them to. This was my problem to fix. But did I even want to fix it? Why couldn't I tell the sisters the truth? Then I remembered Leo punching me in the living room. That was why. The sisters didn't even know Wyatt was the Future Source. They couldn't know about me being Piper's son.

"Before the Source took over, I was very close to your son Wyatt," I said, treading on thin ground. "I guess the Source went after me because he thought I was his personal whitelighter." Lies. Lies, always lies.

"Wait, Wyatt's fighting against the Source in the Future?" asked Phoebe.

"Why didn't he just use the potion or the spell we used to get rid of the Source before?" asked Piper, concern flooding her eyes. Not concern for me. For Wyatt.

"The Source is immune to your powers," I said, and I continued quickly as Paige opened her mouth. "And I can't tell you why. Future consequences."

"Oh, come on Chris, you barely told us anything," said Paige.

"Look, you know I can't--"

"Risk changing the Future." said Piper as she rolled her eyes. Then she got angry. "You just told me that my _son_, my little boy, is going to fight against the Source of all Evil. And you said the Source is in _complete_ control of the world. I think we deserve to know the Source's powers, at least, so that we can find him and fight him now before he becomes all powerful."

I almost smiled as the thought of Piper standing in front of Wyatt's playpen in dark combat boots. "Piper, I can't tell you. Fu--"

"Don't you dare say Future consequences!" said Piper as she walked closer to me, holding up a finger. "We are talking about the future of my son. He should not have to battle the Source of all Evil, the Source nearly killed us twice. So you _will_ tell me what I want to know."

The tension in the room was building, and I got a sense that this conversation was now solely between me and Piper. Rogue and Logan didn't even use mind-speak.

I steeled myself before answering. "I can't, Piper. It's not something I can talk about. It could risk screwing up the Future."

"Oh, don't lie to her Chris," drawled Pyro's smug, obnoxious voice. "Tell your mommy what she wants to know." I felt my blood run cold, and I froze. I didn't know what to do, how to lie my way out of this.

"Mommy?" said Piper, "I think you might still be dreaming, John. Let me get a potion that'll help you sleep." She walked away from me over to a table where there was a normal knockout potion.

Pyro scowled when Piper called him John, but he turned smug again quickly. "Ah, Piper, now why would you do that when I have information about the Future? And unlike him," he jerked his head at me, "I'll tell you everything you want to know."

"Don't listen to him, he's lying." I said quickly. I hoped not too quickly.

"Fine," said Pyro, "Cast a truth spell. I don't mind. In fact," now he smiled, "I want you to."

"Why would anyone _want_ to have a truth spell on them?" asked Phoebe. The tension between us had broken, but it had also mounted. Pyro _could not_ have a truth spell cast on him. No way. He would reveal everything.

"He probably found a way to lie under truth spell, and wants to trick you," I said quickly, "Don't listen to him."

"If he did figure out a way to lie, can't we just invent a new spell?" asked Phoebe.

"That'll work," said Paige at the same time I said, "No".

Phoebe looked at us thoughtfully. "I'll write the spell," she said, sitting down.

"Piper," I tried, "You're actually gonna trust anything this guy says? He's more demon then human now. He tortured me, and you're gonna cast a truth spell on him? You _know_ you can't know about the Future."

"Yes, Chris, I know there are some things that should remain secret, but I want to know what's happened with my family. Future Wyatt should have enough power to beat the Source, and if he doesn't which I highly doubt, we do. Your story doesn't make sense, and if I find out necessary Future knowledge I can save my family, and also get the demon that comes after Wyatt. You know, the one you've been looking for ever since you got here." she said, sitting down.

"Paige," I started, but she interrupted.

"Don't look at me, Chris. I agree with Piper."

"What? Why?" I asked.

I heard Piper in the background thanking the Professor, but asking him to leave. She said the counter spell, and the portal disappeared. Rogue and Logan remained silent. They and I both knew that they couldn't interfere without drawing more suspicion on themselves and me.

"Because she has some valid points," said Paige. "And don't forget, Chris, we want to save Wyatt from that demon just as much as you do."

"You want to save Wyatt?" I asked, "Huh? Then do not listen to him." I pointed to Pyro. "He will find a way to twist everything. You can't trust him."

"Yeah," said Paige, "Except you don't share any Future information with us. He will. We'll cast a spell to make sure he can't lie. I don't know why you're not getting this, Chris. It's a simple enough process."

"Spell's done!" called Phoebe, getting up and walking to Phoebe and Piper.

"Don't do this," I said desperately. "You have no idea what you're doing."

"Then tell us something about the Future we can use, Chris." said Piper, turning to look at me.

"I can't," my voice came out as a whisper.

"Fine." said Piper, "Then he will."

She turned back to her sisters and they chanted the spell.

"**Let this boy now tell the truth  
****We cast a spell upon this youth  
****Until with information we are satisfied  
****Let Gorgog, John, and Pyro be unable to lie."**

Pyro glowed red and smiled. He had an evil smile. I clenched my hands into fists to keep them from shaking in worry.

"_Chris?"_ asked Rogue, but I sent her my fears and she backed off, sending me reassurance before leaving my mind. I couldn't deal with_ anyone_ inside my mind right now. When all my secrets, and covers, and plans were about to be revealed.

"Who is the Source in the Future?" asked Piper.

Pyro smiled. "The Source in the Future is Wyatt Matthew Halliwell. Your son."

Piper, Phoebe, and Paige's mouths dropped open. "What?" gasped Piper.

"Mm-hmm," said Pyro, and I saw that he was savoring this. "He kills people, tortures Innocents. Employs demons, and witches. He kills all the Elders, Cleaners and Avatars."

"Phoebe?" asked Piper, silently pleading Phoebe to say that there was a way Pyro got past the spell.

"No," said Phoebe, in shock. "He can't have lied. Oh god."

Piper turned to me, "You said Wyatt worked against the Source!" She yelled, "You said you were here to save him from a demon! You_lied_!"

"He did!" I said quickly, "Wyatt was turned evil by a demon in the Past. I came back to stop him from turning evil, to make sure my Future never happened."

"And if you couldn't stop the demon, or find out who it was," said Piper slowly, menacingly, "Would you have killed my son?"

"Yes." I whispered, telling a truth that might be fatal. And Piper lifted back her arms and blasted me with her power, yelling in defiance. She sent me flying backwards. I fell into a table, and it collapsed under my sudden weight.

"Leave him alone, Piper!" yelled Rogue, and I heard the metallic sound that meant Logan had unsheathed his claws.

"No!" I called, getting up, only now realizing that Piper's attack had hit my left shoulder and had torn most of the skin off it. I ignored the fiery pain. "No," I moved my other arms towards Rogue and Logan. "Sanctuary," I called and they vanished in an orb of lights. I heard them calling out to me with their minds, but I ignored them.

"Piper, that would have only been a last resort, only if he was already starting to turn evil." I said, "Before he turned, I was Wyatt's friend. That's why I came back." Some instinct told me not to mention I was Piper's son. I trusted that instinct.

"And how am I supposed to believe that," said Piper in a deadly voice, "How can I believe anything you say?"

"You shouldn't," said Pyro, "He battled Wyatt in the Future. Fought against him."

If anything, Piper turned more menacing, and she, Phoebe, and Paige started to walk up to me, potions in their hands. I didn't know which potions. I didn't think they knew either, or cared.

"Wyatt captured me, took away my powers. He held Excalibur to my throat and sent witches and demons after me. I only fought in self-defense." I spoke quickly, knowing full well that my life may be on the line. Again. "He killed my friends, my charges. My closest friend died in my arms because of his attacks. My fiancé fought away his guards as I came through the time portal. He never stopped hunting me and my family."

"Why would he care about your family?" demanded Phoebe in an icy-cold voice.

"My family was the Ultimate Good in the world. They didn't realize what was happening until it was too late. Wyatt was too far gone. He killed them. My aunts, my uncles, my cousins, it's only by sheer luck he didn't kill my grandpa too."

"What about the Power of Three?" said Phoebe in that same cold voice, "Nothing beats that. We would be able to stop him from turning."

"No you won't," I said, "Because in the Future, you are all dead!" I shouted the last part, and then closed my eyes, stopping the tears that threatened to build up. I opened my eyes, still fighting tears. "Piper is killed by darklighters, and Phoebe and Paige are killed by Wyatt."

"And Leo?" asked Phoebe.

"He may as well be dead, I don't know what happened to him. After Piper died he vanished. I never saw him or sensed him again." my voice grew soft as I voiced my private opinion of what Leo had done next, with no family and a son turned Evil. "I think he committed suicide after Phoebe and Paige were murdered."

"You are lying." said Piper, "You _have_ to be." I looked at her, and saw that there were silent tears coursing down her cheeks.

"I'm not lying. I would never lie about this." I took a shaky breath. "You can cast another truth spell on me if you want, but you have to believe me. You have to know I' m telling the truth."

"You wouldn't submit to a truth spell if you had a choice, Future-boy," said Piper, distrust seeming to radiate from her very pores. "That is one of the few things we know about you."

"Then have Phoebe sense my feelings while I talk," I said, "Please, just give me a chance to explain."

Piper was silent for a moment, "John, which demon turns Wyatt evil?" she asked. John was still under truth spell.

"None. No demon turns him evil." said Pyro with a sneer.

"What?" I said, and looked back at Piper. How was this possible?

"Will you never stop with the lies?" she yelled and blasted me again with her power. It hit my left arm, but thankfully didn't cause it to explode. I didn't fall back, and I gritted my teeth against a scream. I was lucky Wyatt hadn't inherited this power. It hurt like hell.

"I'm not lying," I said evenly, "If I didn't believe what I was saying, why would I stand here letting you blast my arm into oblivion?"

"His arm should be Healing itself," said Paige suddenly, "He's a whitelighter. Isn't he?"

"What are you?" demanded Piper.

"I'm a witchlighter." I said, "Part witch, part whitelighter, just like Paige."

"You are nothing like me!" said Paige angrily.

"I am in blood," I said, "Magical hybrids became more common in the Future. Wyatt started to wipe out the mortals, and we needed more people. Some of the magical creatures started to interbreed. My father was a whitelighter and my mother was a witch."

"So that's why you can't heal?" asked Paige.

"Yes," I said.

"Fine," said Piper and she jerked her hands at me again. I flinched, but nothing hurt. She had tried to freeze me.

"You don't freeze!" she said angrily. "Paige,"

Paige threw a potion at my feet and I saw my powers, blue and white lights, fly over to Paige and into an empty vial. "Crystals, circle," she called, and the quartz crystals surrounded me, forming a crystal cage over my head. I felt like I wanted to scream and cry and orb away forever. I couldn't do any of those things.

"You didn't have to do that," I said, making sure my voice was even, "I wouldn't have hurt you."

Piper, Phoebe, and Paige didn't answer. "Orb him into the living room, we don't want him and John together," said Piper.

"Living room," Paige said, moving her arm at me.

I felt her power orb me to the living room. I was alone. I heard the sisters moving around upstairs, talking to each other. Dimly I heard the sisters call for Leo. That would just make everything worse. And now my shoulder was really starting to throb. I looked at it closely. It looked like half my skin had been burned away. None of my muscles were torn, but there was still a lot of blood. I slowly took off my jacket and wrapped it around my upper arm and shoulder. The pressure hurt, but the wound wasn't fatal. It would bleed, and then heal, and that would be the end of it. If I could get the sisters to trust me, maybe Leo would Heal it, although I'd rather get help from someone else, maybe a whitelighter.

"_Chris orb us out of here now!"_ came Logan's voice, _"We felt your pain, now move you ass and orb us out!"_

"_Can't. The sisters stripped my powers."_ I sent back. _"Sorry I closed off the link, but I had to concentrate on what was happening."_

"_Show us then!"_ said Rogue. I did.

I felt Logan and Rogue's anger on my behalf. _"Don't worry about it. I understand why they did it. They think I'm a threat, which puts you both under suspicion too. You'll be safe at Sanctuary until I get my powers back."_

"_Why did the Professor let them do that?"_ asked Rogue, _"He should have protected you."_

"_No,"_ I said,_ "He's not of this world and the sisters don't know him. He has none of the authority he has in your world. Here, he's just an old telepath."_

I felt Logan's anger at that comment. _"I'm not trying to insult him, but here, magic is a lot more flexible. The Professor is strong, but he's not even close to being the strongest one on this world."_I said.

I sat down in the crystal cage, holding my jacket to my wounded shoulder, pressing down to stop the bleeding faster. I sensed Leo orb in upstairs with Wyatt. I may not have my powers, but I did have my senses, for which I was grateful. At least I would know if a demon came. Speaking of demons what Pyro said didn't make sense.

"_What else could turn Wyatt?"_ I asked Rogue and Logan.

"_Maybe an evil witch?"_ said Rogue.

"_A human?" _asked Logan, _"Some humans can be as bad as demons, if not worse."_

"_But they would have to have a motive," _I said._"Something like that couldn't have happened by accident."_

"_Maybe he was tempted?" _said Rogue.

"_He might have let out his anger with magic, and that could've led to it," _said Logan,_ "Maybe seeing others in pain helped him deal with his own."_

"_When exactly did he turn?" _asked Rogue.

"_I don't know. He always had a quick temper, but it never really showed until after mom died. Then he just lost it."_ I said, sighing out loud.

Suddenly upstairs I heard Piper yelling I managed to catch "Stupid whitelighter!" and I knew she was talking about me. I chuckled darkly. The really ironic thing about this mess was that it was all my own fault. I shook my head. I'd have to figure out something else to do once this blew over. Assuming it did blow over. Leo would probably want them to permanently bind my powers. I sighed in frustration, and waited for Leo or the sisters to come down to tell me what they had decided.

Pyro's POV

After the witches orbed the witchlighter downstairs, they stormed out, calling for Leo. I heard them arguing below, yelling about the witchlighter. I laughed to myself. Stupid witches. They really though I didn't have a Plan B. If there was one thing Magneto taught me, it was to always have a backup. Shaking my head at their stupidity, I pulled out a gift from my master and mentor. It was a chip, similar to a walkie-talky, just smaller. It didn't hurt that it was magic-proof.

"Master?" I whispered into the chip. It was whisper sensitive, so the witches wouldn't hear me.

"Pyro. What's happened?" asked my master, his British accent playing itself directly into my ear.

"The witches saved the witchlighter, locked me in a crystal cage given to them by the Elders and cast a truth spell on me. I turned them against their witchlighter; they stripped his powers and put him in another cage downstairs. If everything goes according to plan, he should be recycled within three days. If he's not killed." I said with ravish. I wanted to keep the witchlighter for a while. He didn't break easy. It was fun to play with him.

"And Leo?" asked my master.

"One of the witches called for him. He orbed down. I'll distract him by attacking Wyatt once I break out of the cage." I said.

"If the Elders gave the Charmed Ones the cage you're in, your powers cannot free you of it, my friend." said my master. "I will create a distraction. When you are given the athame by Gol stab one of the crystals. It will allow you to walk through the cage, though it might weaken you temporarily."

"The athame will be able to get through the cage?" I asked.

"Yes."

"Very well. They will soon be out of your way." I said.

"Good luck, my friend. Don't forget, bring Wyatt to me." With that said the chip turned off, and I put it away. I smiled darkly, anticipating my chance to attack. That witchlighter was mine. And so were Rogue and Logan. I would enjoy their deaths.

**A/N: Okay people, what'd you think? Also, in the next chapter, we see Pyro's master, and Leo makes a suggestion about what to do with Chris. REVIEW!!!**


	16. The Next Problem

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. Blah, blah, blah.**

**Ok people, I have something very important to tell you. Aside from this fic I'm starting to write another one. It's a Harry Potter fic that takes place in DH, and it centers around Neville, Ginny, and Luna. The fic is about what happened at Hogwarts while Harry Ron and Hermione were out hunting Horcruxes. This fic is going to take up a lot of time for me, so I might not update this story as often. I will try, and I'm going to continue writing this story. I won't be one of those haitus-forever people.. The first chapter of that fic (if anyone is interested) should be posted anywhere from this Sunday onwards. **

Piper's POV

As soon as Paige orbed Chris downstairs I stormed into my room. I was storming and I knew it; but I didn't care.

"How could he do this?" I said, as I stopped in front of my bed and turned to face my sisters. "He lied to us! He betrayed us! A stupid fire-starter mutant is more trustworthy then him! He said we died. How's that possible? Nothing can kill the Power of Three, not even Cole and the Source could."

"And what about Leo? He said Leo committed suicide; Elders can't do that." said Paige, "They've already been dead at least once."

"And he said Wyatt turned Evil," said Phoebe angrily, all of us furious at the witchlighter, "How does he expect us to believe that the son of the greatest force of good would turn out evil and kill his aunts?"

"I swear, I have had enough with that _stupid whitelighter_!" I yelled, letting out all of my frustration. I turned up to the ceiling, "Leo! Leo, get your butt down here right now!"

Leo orbed down. "What? What's happened?" he asked.

"What happened?" I said, "You wanna know what happened? First your orb out in the middle of our conversation with the telepath _with Wyatt_! You don't even tell me that you're going, you just orb away! And you missed learning that apparently in the Future all of us are dead, and our son is the Source of all Evil!" I was practically shaking with rage.

"The Elders called me, they said they wanted Wyatt to be kept away from Pyro in case he's after him." said Leo, looking confused. I didn't care. "The Elders just wanted to make sure he would be safe."

"So Wyatt is still Up There?!" I demanded.

"Yes," said Leo, "I left him with Sandra,"

"Wasn't that the Elder he got away from before?" pointed out Paige.

"She's playing with him now, they're both fine." said Leo soothingly. I didn't want to be soothed.

"No it's not fine, Leo! Everything is not fine!" I yelled, bursting into tears. How could my son become the Source? Chris was lying; he_had_ to be. Pyro said a demon didn't turn Wyatt evil.

"Oh, Piper," said Phoebe as she hugged me.

I pushed her away. "Phoebe, I do not want to be hugged! I want to know the truth; the real truth. Not that stupid mix of lies that Chris is always giving us."

"We'll find out the truth Piper," said Paige, "Don't worry."

"I mean, how do we even know Chris isn't a demon?" I said desperately, "He could be...be...I don't know, but there is no way he's Good if he came back from the Future to kill my son!"

"He came back to kill Wyatt?!" demanded Leo, "I'm gonna kill him." Leo started to walk towards the door, but Phoebe stopped him.

"He said if he couldn't stop Wyatt from turning Evil, he'd kill him." clarified Phoebe, although her tone changed to one of puzzlement. "But how could he even _think_ of killing a little boy? We don't even know if he was lying about Wyatt turning Evil."

"We asked Pyro under truth spell, and he said a demon didn't turn Wyatt Evil." Paige said to Leo, by way of explanation. "But that doesn't mean something else did."

"Like Chris," said Leo, "Think about it. He comes back here and says he wants to save Wyatt. But he doesn't tell us anything, he trapped me in Valhalla, and he's killed Good magical creatures. What if he's really trying to turn Wyatt evil?"

"But he sends us to kill demon after demon," said Phoebe, "That's not Evil."

"Yes, but demons get stronger over time. They might be his competition in his Future." I said, realizing that Leo might be right. "By getting close to us, he ensured his protection."

"But what about orbing?" said Phoebe, "They're whitelighter colored orbs."

"Just because he's a part whitelighter doesn't make him good," Leo told Phoebe, "There are full blooded whitelighters who collapse under the pressure; lose faith in the Greater Good. They turn rogue and abandon their charges."

"Also, Chris is only half whitelighter. It's not the powers, or the orbs, that make someone Evil. It's their choices." said Paige.

"We have to find out the truth. The whole truth," I said. I turned to Leo. "Is there a way?" I asked.

Leo was quiet for a moment. "Leo, I need to find out the truth in order to protect our son. Is there a way?"

"There are some options," said Leo after a short pause. "You can cast a truth spell, or a mind reading spell on him."

"No," said Paige, "We don't know if he can trick a truth spell, and Rogue and Logan are inside his mind. It'd be like trying to read three minds at once."

"Anything else?" I asked.

"We could use a genie, or go into the Future ourselves." he suggested.

"We don't know what the Future holds," said Phoebe, "If we go there we could end up walking into a trap. Also, if we really are dead in the Future, if we go there we won't have our powers."

"And genies are tricksters," said Paige, "They'd probably help Chris just for the fun of it."

"Will you stop shooting down his ideas?" I asked shrilly, "Unless you have any suggestions? Because I want to find out the truth so I can get the right to beat the crap out of that lying piece of--"

"Piper!" said Leo. I stopped ranting. "We will find a way."

"We could always threaten to leave him in the cage until he talks," suggested Paige. "Or cast a spell on the crystals to shock him, or change colors every time he lies?"

"But then all he has to do is stay silent, and you _know_ he can do that forever," said Phoebe, rolling her eyes in frustration, "One thing you have to give him credit for; is that whatever he came here to do, he's determined to do it. He won't give up. We just have to make sure he won't hurt us or Wyatt."

"Phoebe, how can you even give him credit?" I asked, incredulous, "After all he's done, he deserves to have his powers stripped at the _very_ least!" I turned to Leo, "Leo, there has to be some way we can get the truth out of him. There just has to be."

Chris had to be lying. If he wasn't... no, I wouldn't even let myself think that Wyatt could be Evil. Chris was lying. I just had to make sure...

"There is one last option," said Leo, "The Tribunal."

"The what?" I asked impatiently. I was not in the mood to deal with cryptic Elder quotes right now. I needed poof that Chris was wrong, so I could beat the crap out of him.

"It's kind of like a magical Supreme Court." said Leo quickly, catching my impatience, "It's made up of two Elders and two very powerful Upper-Level demons. Whenever there's a major magical crisis and a decision has to be made, the Tribunal makes it."

"But what does that have to do with Chris?" asked Paige.

"The Tribunal is also responsible for recycling souls," Leo saw the confused faces of me and my sisters. "Like reincarnation. When people die, they're reincarnated. But when Elders or whitelighters break the rules, they get recycled."

"Like reincarnation come early?" asked Phoebe, "Isn't that murder?"

Leo gave us a Look. "Technically, yes. But the soul remains intact, and sometimes the person being recycled is given their memories of their life before. The purpose of being recycled is to teach. To save the soul of a fallen paragon of good."

"Or to punish." said Paige. Leo didn't nod, but we all knew the answer to that question was yes. How could the Elders condone this? Part of me felt doubtful. I wanted to punish Chris for what he'd done to us, to me. But at the same time, I wasn't sure I wanted to kill him. I pushed that thought aside.

"How long ago was the last person recycled?" I asked.

"Five hundred years ago," said Leo, "An Elder was put under a spell that turned her into a demon. She was driven insane and killed a lot of people. But she had done a lot of good, so instead of vanquishing her, they sent her back to earth in a new mortal body."

"Would going to the Tribunal force Chris to be honest with us?" asked Paige.

"I think so," said Leo, "There's a tile in the center of the chamber where memories important to a case reveal themselves. Like evidence; and it's always honest. But he might find out stuff about you. And if you summon the Tribunal they'll be the ones to put Chris on trial, and we might not ever find out what we need to about him."

"Then forget it," said Phoebe, "We need to find out about Chris. The Tribunal will just get in the way of that."

"Then what do you suggest?" I asked, snapping in pent up frustration. I took a breath. "Sorry."

Phoebe nodded. "Why don't we just keep him in the cage until he talks?" she said, "I think that idea'll work best. He doesn't have his powers and we have the smaller quartz crystals. We enchant the crystals to shock him every time he lies, and if he doesn't tell us anything, we keep him in the cage."

"But what about food? He needs to eat, remember? He's not a full whitelighter." Paige pointed out.

"If he was even telling the truth about that," Phoebe muttered.

"Why don't we use that to our advantage?" I said, "Until he talks, we won't feed him. Combined with no powers, the cage, the shocks and no food, he'll have to tell us what we want to know."

"You do realize that we're getting very close to torturing our whitelighter?" asked Phoebe, "And don't forget about Rogue and Logan. Chris may have orbed them away, but they'll feel anything we do to him, even his hunger. I don't think Logan is the forgiving type."

"_Former_ whitelighter." I corrected, "And Chris knows they'll feel anything he does. Maybe that'll make him talk faster. As for Rogue and Logan..." I took a breath. "I don't want Rogue to get hurt. I don't think she found a way around the truth spell, and she is only a kid. But, come on, she was working with Chris!"

Phoebe, Paige and Leo nodded grimly. "Maybe you can make up a spell to block their connection?" said Leo, "At least enough so Rogue won't get hit with sympathy pain."

"Okay," said Paige. "I'll get the smaller crystals, make up a spell, and meet you down there." With that said she walked out the door and headed to the attic.

Leo, Phoebe and I walked downstairs into the living room. We saw Chris sitting on the floor in the center of the crystal cage. He had his jacket wrapped around the shoulder and upper arm I'd hit when I tried to blow him up. At the time, I thought he would have blown up and reformed like Leo did. I saw that his jacket was bloody.

Chris stood up and looked at us, just looked. "Leo. Piper. Phoebe." he greeted us. I glared at him. "So, are you gonna let me out?" he asked.

"Only if you tell us the truth," I said, "The whole truth. No lies. No 'future consequences'."

Chris sighed, "Piper, I already told you, I'll submit to a truth spell."

"Which is exactly why we're not giving you one," Leo said, his voice suffused with anger and a rarely seen menace. "We want to make sure you don't know a way around that. Now, if you really want to tell the truth, you'll be okay with that. Won't you?"

Chris exhaled deeply. "What am I supposed to say?" he took another breath. "What are you going to do? Put me on trial with the Elders? Summon the Tribunal? Try to read my mind? I'm _willing_ to tell the truth, or as much of it as I can."

Paige orbed in next to Phoebe and Leo. "You have it?" I asked her.

She nodded. She put one of the smaller crystals on each of the five larger ones. Each one glowed white for a moment before fading. Chris looked at the smaller quartzes.

"Shockers?" he asked, pain filling his eyes, which he quickly masked. It was there for less then a second. I looked at Phoebe and saw his pain reflected in her eyes after he'd hidden it. "Pain," she mouthed at me and I nodded. Why did he feel pain? I knew it wasn't just the shoulder. Paige chanted the spell.

"**Little crystals that here now lie  
****Quickly, sharply, shock this youth  
****In the case he tells an untruth."**

The crystals all glowed white again. "Now," I said, "Is Wyatt the Source of all Evil in the Future?" I asked.

"Yes," Chris said. The crystals did nothing. How was that possible? How could that be possible? I controlled my urge to cry.

"How did it happen?" I asked, hyperventilating slightly.

"I don't know," said Chris. "My fiancé and I thought a demon turned him evil when he was younger. After you died," I flinched, "He lost the desire to save Innocents. He turned evil."

"How did you know it was something in the past, not something else?" asked Paige.

"Wyatt always had a quick temper. I used to go on demon hunts with him when everyone was asleep. I would always care more about saving the Innocent, but Wyatt really only cared about killing the demon. This was when I was around twelve." Chris took a breath, "For as long as I'd known him, he'd always be quick to anger and slow to forgive. He'd gotten in trouble in school for starting fights. Once, he used magic and nearly killed a kid that insulted him. We figured there had to be something wrong."

"That's not enough," said Phoebe, "There must have been something else."

Chris was silent. "There's something I remembered from when I was very young. I was at your house a lot when I was a baby, and one of my earliest memories was of something bad happening to Wyatt. I don't know exactly what it was," he said before I could ask, "All I remembered was that it was something bad. I figured it had to be a demon."

"How do we know your family?" asked Phoebe, "I mean, you said you're about twenty years from the Future, and you look about twenty. Wouldn't we know your family by now?"

"You know them," Chris said, with a strange look on his face.

"Who are they?" I asked.

"You'll never believe me," he said, laughing slightly, "Even with the spell on the crystals, even with me in this cage, you'd never believe me. It's really better that you don't know, Piper. It keeps things easier. It could mess with the Future, especially if my parents found out about me. I'm not born yet in this time."

"He has a point," said Phoebe, "If he isn't born yet and his parents find out, it could stop his birth."

"Fine." said Paige, "Next question. What do you know for sure about what turns Wyatt?"

"I know it happens just before and maybe during my birth," said Chris, "And I know it's something that grows over time. As he got older, he got more violent."

"You talk like you were close to Wyatt," said Leo, in a slightly accusatory tone.

"Yeah," said Chris, "I was."

"Are you the one who turns Wyatt Evil?" asked Leo.

Chris visibly flinched. "No!" he said, "God, Leo, you're exactly the same." I saw Chris's eyes widen slightly, and I realized he said something he didn't want to say.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "The same?"

I saw Chris think quickly, "In my time, Piper has a second son." he said slowly, as if unsure how much to say. My eyes widened and I put my hand to my belly.

"What? When?" I asked, breathlessly. I felt like my world was turning upside down.

"It's not safe for me to tell you when; if I tell you, he might not get born." Chris said. That shut me up. "I was very close to your second son. I knew him better then anyone else, but he and Leo had... issues. Because of that, I resented Leo."

"What?" said Leo, looking worried. "What do you mean issues? I would never treat my son badly."

"You do in my Future," said Chris, and he talked again as Leo opened his mouth to protest. "But that's not important right now. The important thing is to save Wyatt. My Future is hell. I know you don't want to hear this; but Wyatt killed nearly my entire family. I'm not out to get revenge; I just want to make sure it never happens. I swear, I would only kill Wyatt if Evil got to him. Only if he couldn't be saved. You have to believe me. If you never believe another word I say, you have to believe this. Otherwise, my coming back will be for nothing, and my Future will never be saved."

I looked at the crystals. They hadn't shocked Chris once throughout the entire conversation. I forced myself to admit that he was telling the truth. I struggled to come to terms with everything I'd learned.

"So," said Chris after what seemed like a century. "What happens to me now?"

"We'll let you out and give you back your powers," I said softly, still trying not to cry over what I had learned about the Future.

"But, Chris, you have to be straight with us." said Phoebe, "How are we supposed to trust you if you keep twisting the truth?"

"And honestly, Chris, we probably won't trust you for a while." said Paige, "You still have to prove yourself. We will save Wyatt from whatever Evil is after him."

Chris nodded. "I understand. Now, will you let me out of the cage?" he asked with a shadow of a smile. I nodded, rubbing the tears off my cheeks and sniffling. I had just realized I'd been crying. Suddenly Chris's face turned to one of fear as he looked at some point over my shoulder.

Chris's POV

I saw four demons shimmer in behind Piper. One of the demons was a darklighter. "Piper, look out!" I yelled, and she, Phoebe, Paige, and Leo all turned around to see the demons. The darklighter raised his crossbow and fired at Leo.

"Arrow!" called Paige, and the arrow flew towards a different demon, who blinked out of the way.

"Warlock," called Phoebe, "Piper, the spell!" Phoebe levitated into the air and started chanting, while aiming a kick at one of the demons, who had just conjured up a fireball. Piper and Paige joined in the chant.

"**The Power of Three will set us free!  
****The Power of Three will set us free!  
****The Power of Three will set us free!"**

The warlock screamed and was vanquished. Phoebe kicked her demon in the face, and Piper blew one up. Paige sent an energy ball out of one's hand, into another's chest. Piper blew up the last demon. And they all looked around to see if there were more. I did too. That attack didn't make sense.

"What was the point of that?" asked Leo. There was a crash upstairs.

"Pyro," said Paige.

"It was a distraction," I said, "He's trying to get away!"

As the sisters ran towards the staircase, Leo close behind them. "Wait!" I called after Leo. "Leo! Leo!" He either didn't hear me, or didn't care enough to come. Bastard.

I would have to try to get out of the cage myself or wait for the sisters to free me. Also, Paige had my powers, so even if I did get out, I'd be helpless. Tentatively, I touched the cage, and was shocked. I pulled my hand away and shook it to get rid of the pain. I was about to try making up a spell when three demons shimmered in around me. They leered at me, but didn't do anything. It was almost like they were guarding me. I felt panic start to form, but kept my face unconcerned. The demons were Pyro's. He was anticipating _beating_ the Charmed Ones. And he wanted me. And I didn't have my powers.

I focused on a plan. Phoebe was an empath. If I broadcast my emotions, maybe she could receive them, and help me somehow, or at least outsmart Pyro and escape. I focused on fear; for her and her sisters. Entrapment; for me, and I focused on realization; for Pyro's plan. I focused on the emotions and sent them throughout the manor. I broadcast them as loud as I could. There was no way to know if Phoebe got my message, but I hoped she did. For all our sakes. I heard a scuffle upstairs and glanced upwards trying to understand what was happening.

"Soon, witchlighter," taunted one of the demons, "Soon."

Phoebe's POV

I ran upstairs closely behind Piper, followed by Paige and Leo. We reached the attic and saw five demons waiting for us at the door. One demon was standing outside Pyro's cage and was passing a athame through it.

"Piper!" I yelled, and she blasted the demon giving Pyro the athame, but it fell into the cage. Pyro picked it up and stabbed one of the crystals. I levitated in the air and kicked a demon in the face. He fell onto his back as the other demons conjured fireballs. Piper blasted two of the demons, and Paige orbed a fireball into the one I had knocked down. I picked up a lamp from a table and swung it down on top of one demon's head. The lamp shattered and the demon leaned over and staggered back, clutching his head. I picked up a shard from the lamp and stabbed him, just as Piper blew up the last one. All the demons were gone, but something was wrong with the cage.

The cage was flickering, it's green light diminishing as Pyro stuck his athame farther into the crystal. The walls of the cage seemed to waver and ripple, sparks swirling along the cage. Pyro took the athame out of the crystal and plunged it into the dome of the cage, pushing hard against it.

"Should it be doing that?" I asked, as Pyro leaned into the knife.

"No, those crystals make the cage impenetrable." said Leo, looking worried.

"Then what the hell is happening?" asked Paige, snapping in fear, because Pyro was clearly doing something to the cage.

"I dunno," said Leo.

Then, the dagger cut a hole in the dome of the cage. He shouldn't have been able to do it. Pyro had been leaning on the knife too hard, and he fell through the cage, getting shocked by the crystals before they shorted out. Pyro staggered up, and flicked his lighters, and evil expression on his face.

"That hurt," he said, as he brought a fireball into his hand.

"Fireball!" called Paige, and she orbed it into his chest.

"Was that supposed to hurt, witch?" he laughed. "I control fire. Nothing you can do will hurt me."

"Oh yeah?" said Piper as she blasted him. Pyro fell backwards from the force of the explosion, but didn't seem to be hurt too badly.

Then I felt a surge of three feelings; fear, entrapment, and realization. I felt that the feelings came from Chris. I sensed from his feelings that he was in danger, and that we were in danger too. His feelings were very strong, and the sheer force of them made me dizzy for a moment. I swayed, putting my hand on my chest to regain my breath.

"Piper, we have to run," I said, realizing from this small battle and from Chris's feelings that we were outmatched. I grabbed Paige. "Orb us to Chris and give him back his powers." I said urgently.

"Phoebe, what--?" said Paige, but Pyro was getting up.

"Leo, orb Piper! Orb!" I said frantically, realizing that Pyro couldn't be defeated without a potion. I knew that if we stayed, he could kill us. Paige orbed us out just as Pyro conjured up a fireball and sent it flying at me.

We reformed downstairs next to Chris, but there were three more demons standing around his cage. Leo and Piper orbed in in back of me as the demons looked at each other in confusion and formed fireballs.

"Fireball!" said Paige, and one of the demons was vanquished by its fellow's energy ball. The other two demons threw their fireballs, and I used my empath powers to find the emotion that fueled the demons' powers. Hate. I harnessed the emotion, and the power, and sent the two fireballs flying back towards the demons. They both screamed as they were vanquished.

"You're rescuing me?" said Chris, almost as though afraid to believe it.

"Yep," I said and gestured to Paige, "Paige."

"Right," she said, "Crystal!" One of the crystals moved, and the cage diminished. Chris stepped out of the remaining circles, looking anxious now.

"We have to move fast, Pyro'll be here any minute." Chris said, as he looked back at the staircase. His eyes widened in fear. I turned around and saw Pyro descending the steps. He raised his hand and threw a fireball at us. Without warning, Chris threw himself at me and Paige, knocking us down and out of the path of the fireball. I landed hard on the ground, the wind knocked out of me.

I heard Pyro's scream of pain as I saw Piper blast him. "Paige, I don't care where, but orb Phoebe somewhere now!" yelling Chris as he rolled off Paige and me, and ran to Leo. "Leo, orb Piper, now!" he said urgently as Pyro raised both his hands and the room suddenly began to grow very hot. I saw Chris grab on to Piper's hand as Leo orbed them away. A second later, the room disappeared, as I was orbed away by Paige.

We reformed Up There. I recognized it from the time my sisters and I had vanquished Ames, the warlock who had tried to kill the Elders by stealing whitelighter powers and combining them with a darklighter crossbow.

"What are we doing here?" I asked Paige.

"I don't know," she said, looking surprised. "I was just following Leo's orb trail. Are we--?"

"Yes. I figured we'd be safest Up Here," said Leo. Paige's jaw dropped as she looked around. She'd never been Up Here before; she looked like she was trying to memorize everything for later.

Chris let go of Piper's hand and looked back at Paige. "So... can I have my powers back now?" he asked nervously, his eyes dilating rapidly as he conversed with Rogue and Logan.

Paige nodded. She threw the vial containing Chris's powers at his feet. The vial shattered and blue and white lights flew up into Chris's body. He glowed blue, and the lights faded. He smiled.

"Thanks," he said, and through my empath power, I felt his heartfelt thanks and... love? "We should go to where Rogue and Logan are," said Chris, "It should be protected from Pyro. You're gonna need to prepare some serious firepower in order to vanquish him."

Just then an older man, maybe forty, walked over to us and looked at Leo. "Leo, what's happened?" he asked in a brisk, British accent. "What are they doing Up Here?"

"Who are you?" asked Piper.

"Are you an Elder?" asked Paige.

"Yes," said Leo, explaining. "This is Gideon. He was my old mentor, when I first became a whitelighter. He showed me the ropes."

"It was my pleasure, Leo," said Gideon smoothly. "But no one is allowed Up Here, not even the Charmed Ones."

"Well, why don't you tell that to the pyromaniac demon who tried to kill us?" asked Paige irritably. Just because Gideon was an Elder, didn't mean we respected him anymore, although there was something comforting in his smooth manner.

"What?" said Gideon, his eyes widening in surprise. "Did you vanquish it?"

"No," said Chris, "His name's Pyro, but he's called Gorgog by the demons."

"But he's not a demon, he's a mutant, like Rogue and Logan," said Leo. Gideon nodded in understanding.

"Ah, so he is similar to them in powers?" asked Gideon, looking worried. "The other Elders and I don't know much about him, only what Leo told us."

"He controls fire, in all it's forms," said Chris, "But he can't create it. He can change it, though, make it larger and hotter then a normal fire."

"Ah." said Gideon.

"Look," said Chris, "We really should be going to Rogue and Logan, they're getting worried." He held out his hand. I took it.

We wouldn't accomplish anything Up Here, and maybe Logan and Rogue would know something else about Pyro. Also, I wanted to apologize to them. Before Chris orbed them away, we had nearly started fighting. And that was purely me, and my sisters' fault.

"Follow me," said Chris, and he orbed out with me.

Chris's POV

Phoebe and I reformed in Sanctuary, and I let go of her hand; I was comforted by the greenish stones. Logan and Rogue came towards me angrily as Leo and Piper, and Paige orbed in. Logan stomped angrily towards me.

"_You could have been killed, you arrogant dickhead!"_ he yelled in his mind. He had been yelling similar things after it had become obvious I wasn't going to be hurt or tortured or killed. He hadn't berated me when I was still in danger, but he didn't at all mind yelling at me now that I was safe.

"Don't ever orb us away again!" yelled Rogue out loud. "Pyro nearly got you that time. Then you would have died and then what would we do?" I looked at her and saw the fear in her eyes.

I felt regret. I didn't want to have scared Rogue. I knew that if Rogue or Logan died, I would go insane from the loss of our mental connection. They must have felt the same thing about me. "I'm sorry." I said,_ "But at the time, they might have attacked us. I had to orb you away for your safety."_ I added in my mind.

"_If you hadn't, I might have been able to absorb the powers of the cage and let you out."_ said Rogue.

"Next time, we fight with you." said Logan out loud, _"Next time_ do not _leave us behind." _he said in my mind.

Rogue turned to the sisters, "Chris sent us the feed of what was happening as it happened, so I get that you sort of trust us now. But don't you understand? When I was under truth spell I swore all of us wanted nothing more then to protect Wyatt. I have _not_ been brainwashed." she looked at each of the sisters. "You have to start trusting us. Yes, we keep secrets, but it's all only to protect Wyatt."

All of the sisters looked somewhat ashamed, and Leo looked flustered, though he still eyed me with distrust. "We're sorry, Rogue," said Piper, "We weren't thinking clearly. _I_ wasn't thinking clearly. It's just still so hard for me to believe that Wyatt turns Evil. And then Pyro said Wyatt wasn't turned Evil by a demon. He was under a truth spell."

"Then something else turned him," said Logan. "That's all there is to it."

"How can you be sure?" asked Piper, "What if it's my fault, and he turned Evil because I'm a bad mother?"

"You're not a bad mother," I said, the words popping out of my mouth of their own accord.

Piper chuckled darkly, and tears filled her eyes. "How would you know?" she asked rhetorically, then, "Forget it. It doesn't matter."

Leo looked like he wanted to go to Piper and comfort her, but he didn't. If I was going to be born, Leo would have to get his act together. But I still had time; I wasn't going to be born for a little less then a year. But I wished I could comfort her; I hated that Piper thought she was a bad mother. She was great; but I reminded myself that my mother was dead. She didn't even technically exit yet anyway. Piper would become my mother, but she wasn't my mother yet, I told myself. I had to keep thinking that.

"Where are we?" asked Phoebe.

"I know this place," said Leo, recognition dawning on his face. "This was Sanctuary; the place I made to hide the Elders during the Battle of the Titans."

"Oh," said Paige, looking around, "I thought it looked familiar. So what do we do know, just sit and wait?"

"No," I said. "We plan. Pyro's too strong to be vanquished normally. I'm not sure if the Power of Three will work either, because he's a mutant."

"Then we'll make a potion," said Piper, "Orb us back to the house."

"You can't go back to the house," said Logan, "Pyro's there--"

"And he's making himself a power-base there," said Rogue, "Which means—"

"He might try to get the Book and go after the Nexus." I said. Rogue, Logan and I all smiled at each other. Reveling in the closeness of our minds.

"Ok, that was weirder then normal," said Paige.

"Definitely," said Phoebe with a nod, then she turned to Paige. "Why don't you just summon the Book here with your powers?"

Paige nodded. "Book!" In a shimmer of white and blue lights the Book of Shadows formed in Paige's hands. She, Piper, and Phoebe sat down in the chairs at the table, and started flicking through the Book. Logan, Rogue and I moved to stand closer to each other, and Leo walked up to me.

"Chris, how'd you get all this here?" he asked, gesturing to the table, chairs, mattresses, and the makeshift shower and toilet.

"Magic," I said after a beat. I wondered whether I should have told him that. But what else could I have said?

"Chris, that's personal gain," said Leo, "That's not allowed."

I felt frustration well up inside me, but I knew that now wasn't the time to get into an argument with Leo. I gave him a nod, and Rogue, Logan and I walked away to the table where Phoebe, Paige, and Piper sat. We looked over their shoulders while they flicked through the Book. When we saw a demon Rogue and Logan didn't know, I'd tell them about it.

"What about this?" said Piper as they reached the page with the vanquishing potion for the Source.

I shook my head. "Maybe with a couple of variations, but you won't get a chance to throw it. He'll roast you first."

"Thank you, Chris, for that vote of confidence." said Paige sarcastically, with a nod.

"What about a spell?" asked Phoebe.

"You'd need time to say it," said Logan. "He won't give you time to vanquish him."

"Unless he was distracted," I said, and Rogue and I looked at each other.

"If I stole his powers..." she said, trailing off.

"Too risky," I said, "But he wants me. If I distract him--"

"No," said Rogue before I could finish.

"No, that could work," said Piper, "If Chris orbs in front of him Pyro will try to get him. Chris orbs out of harms' way, and we throw the potion at him."

"Or I could say the spell," said I suggested.

"What exactly are your witch powers?" asked Leo, as he moved to stand opposite me, on the other side of the table.

"Telekinesis, telekinetic orbing, orbing, potion making, and spell writing." I said, for the benefit of the sisters who were looking up at me. I didn't want to make them more suspicious of me right now. "But before we even try to vanquish Pyro we have to get him away from the Nexus. If he gets it, we might not be able to vanquish him." I looked at Rogue. I wondered how she was holding up; we were talking about killing her friend.

"_Former friend."_ she corrected, _"I'll be okay, Chris, don't worry."_ But I felt the anguish in her mind.

"_Stop underestimating her,"_ said Logan to me on a private thread,_"She's tough."_

"Maybe the Nexus is the answer," said Phoebe after a moment. "If one of us absorbs it, we could cast a spell to banish him from the house. Then the house's magic would keep him out."

"But what about the Woogy Man?" asked Piper, "You'll have to get past him to harness the power of the Nexus,"

"_Woogy Man?"_ asked Logan, _"What the hell is that?" _I sent him the memory of Phoebe telling me the story of the Woogy Man. Logan nodded. _"Oh."_

"I could use the spell to get rid of it," said Phoebe.

"Yeah, but that spell just puts the Woogy Man back in the Earth, it doesn't move him out of the way. You'd have to absorb both the Woogy Man and the Nexus." said Piper, "It might turn you evil."

"Well, if it does then you can say the spell." said Phoebe. "But if I absorb the Nexus, the magic of the house will keep Pyro out. I think it's our best chance."

I nodded. "Okay. I'll make a list of ingredients you'll need for the variated vanquishing potion. Teach Rogue and Logan the spell for the Woogy Man."

Phoebe and Paige walked over to Rogue and Logan, and started to teach them the spell. Piper was talking to Leo, and I heard them mention the Elders. I ignored the conversation.

I sat down at the table and looked at the Book, flicking around as if I didn't know it well. I looked at possible demon contacts, and also started writing down ingredients the sisters would need for the potion. In my Future, the sisters had written this potion themselves after Paige had nearly been killed by a demon. Maybe this time they wouldn't get so close to dying. If I could save Wyatt.

Hmm. Hags. That was something I hadn't tried yet. I memorized the Hag's name and face; her name was Kujat. Where did demons come up with these names? She was old and had grey-green skin, grey hair, and several warts. But she could see into the future. I wrote down more ingredients, running through my head the herbs that would make the strongest vanquishing potion possible.

"_Why don't you just teach us?"_ asked Rogue suddenly. _"We'll have the spell in our minds if you give it to us."_

"_Because I don't want them looking over my shoulder as I'm writing down the ingredients."_ I said, flicking more pages. _"And I want to look over the Book without them getting suspicious. I have a feeling Leo won't want me near it, and there's something I want to check."_

"_What do you need to check?"_ asked Logan.

"_I want to look up Seers and Oracles, and anyone else who can help."_ I said, holding in a frustrated sigh. _"I need to find a new contact in the Underworld. I don't want to rely on that Seer from before. I just wanna look over my options. Also, I want to find out about getting an empath-blocking potion. If Phoebe feels how much I love them, it could ruin everything."_

"_I thought you were gonna come clean with them."_ said Logan.

"_I was,"_ I said, unsure how to continue. _"I've just got this gut feeling that this is something I shouldn't tell them. How would they react if they knew I was Piper's unborn son? If I ever do tell them, it has to be after Piper gets pregnant with me, otherwise I may never be born."_

I felt Rogue's and Logan's mental understanding, and support. This was the hardest thing about being connected with them. Until I'd forged the connection, I'd never realized how much I relied on myself. To have this friendship and support always in my mind and heart... I honestly didn't know how I was going to be able to go back to the Future if I ever saved Wyatt, or how we would be able to handle it if any of us died. I shook my head, as though I could shake away my troubled thoughts.

**A/N: So you've read the chappie, and I made it longer then the other recent ones. Tell me what you think! REVIEW!**


	17. The Woogy

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. **

**Ok, I'm sorry it took so long to update, but I've been having a bit of writers block lately. But this chapter should keep you on the edge of your seat. Enjoy!**

Rogue's POV

I focused on memorizing the spell, which would vanquish the Woogy Man when Phoebe absorbed it. Inside my mind, I felt Logan roll his eyes.

"_This spell sounds like a kid's rhyme."_ he said. _"How's it supposed to get rid of a Woogy?"_

"The_ Woogy,"_ corrected Chris,_ "It's the only one. And rhymes have power with magic."_

"Say it again." said Phoebe out loud. I felt Logan roll his eyes in my mind again as we said the spell.

"I am light  
I am one too strong to fight.  
Go back to the dark, where shadows dwell.  
You cannot have this Halliwell.  
Go away and leave my sight  
And take with you this endless night."

"Good," said Paige with a small smile. "Just remember, the Woogy might take control of Phoebe, so be ready to say the spell if she can't."

Logan gave a curt nod, then a puzzled look came over his face. "How do you know she's the one who'll be absorbed by the Woogy?" he asked. I looked at the sisters, it was a fair question.

Paige and Phoebe looked at each other with surprise, as though they had never thought of that question. "Well, I was born in the manor," said Phoebe, a little flustered. "And the Woogy took over me before, because I had the potential to turn Evil."

"She was Queen of the Underworld before," said Paige, by way of explanation.

"So the Woogy tapped in to my Evil potential." said Phoebe, "It never tried to possess Piper or Paige like it did me."

"But what about us?" said Logan, and now I understood his worry. "Will the Woogy try to possess me, or Rogue, or Chris?"

Phoebe blinked, and it looked as though she had never considered this possibility. I felt the confidence I had in the plan droop. With so much we didn't know, would the plan still work? Could the Woogy possess Logan or Chris or I by accident? If the Woogy just possessed those who had potential for Evil, who would it choose? All of us had_potential_ for turning Evil, so what was the deciding factor?

"_Chris?"_ I asked, showing him what had just been said. He was quiet for a moment.

"_I don't know too much about the Woogy."_ he said slowly, _"It was vanquished a year or two after I was born. I didn't do much research on the Woogy before I came here."_

"_Why not?"_ asked Logan.

"_Because the Woogy was never mentioned in any stories I was told by my mom and aunts that took place in the year before my birth. They didn't fight it in this time in my Future. They only faced it when they vanquished it."_ I felt Chris's rueful mental shrug as he berated himself for this lack of knowledge. _"I hadn't thought it was important. I'm sorry."_

"_Don't worry," _I said. We would be okay. If the Woogy possessed one of us, the other two would say the spell and free the other from it's grasp.

Chris walked over to Phoebe, Paige, Logan, and I. "Here are the ingredients you need," he said, handing the paper to Phoebe. Phoebe took the paper and looked over the list skeptically.

"I don't know some of these ingredients," she said, looking back up at Chris, and giving him the list back.

"Some of them can only be found in the Underworld," admitted Chris. Both Phoebe and Paige gave him looks. "Don't look at me like that, you make up this potion yourselves in the Future."

"Okay." said Paige, after a beat, "So how do we get the ingredients we don't have?"

"I'll get them." said Chris. "I know where to find them."

"You can't go alone," said Paige, "What if Pyro has spies in the Underworld? He could come after you."

"Which is why I'll bring Rogue and Logan with me." said Chris. "We'll be strong enough together, if it is a trap."

"_That's not why you want us to come."_ said Logan inside our minds.

"_You're right."_ said Chris, _"Along with the ingredients for the potion, I need to get the ingredients I'll need for the empath-blocking potion. We all should take the potion. Phoebe might pick up on my love for them from you. And she can't know anything about us that might let them know I'm Piper's son."_

"_Will they give us the potion?" _I asked. _"The demons?"_

"_Not right away,"_ said Chris, _"And most likely I'll have to give the demon something, or get him ingredients. He's so old now, he never gets his own ingredients. But we have to go to set up the commission, so he can start to prepare the potion."_

"_What if it really is a trap?"_ I asked.

"_Then what I said is true; with all of us together, we should be able to handle it." _said Chris proudly_. "We're strong, even more so together."_

"Okay." said Phoebe out loud. "But hurry back, we need those as soon as possible."

"Be safe." said Paige with a smile.

Logan and I walked over to Chris and he extended his hands. I took one with my gloved hand, and Logan took the other. The room faded in blue and white orbs as Chris orbed us away.

Piper's POV

I sighed as Leo orbed out after Chris, Rogue, and Logan. He still refused to trust them; I didn't completely trust them either, but Leo's idea that they were still against Wyatt was ridiculous. He said he wanted to follow them, just to make sure. He said if he didn't see them doing anything wrong, he'd start to trust them. I knew he was just concerned, but still. We had put them through a lot; we should give Rogue, Chris, and Logan some breathing space, so _they_ could start to trust _us_. In the end, I managed to convince Leo stay with Wyatt and the other Elders until we called him.

I ran my hand through my hair as I walked over to Phoebe and Paige. "Hi." I said, "So did they learn the spell."

"Word perfect," said Paige, "But Logan brought up something we hadn't thought of."

"What?" I asked.

"What if the Woogy doesn't absorb me?" said Phoebe, "Logan was concerned it would decide to possess Rogue or Chris or him. What if it does?"

"Phoebe, we know the Woogy," I said, pushing that thought aside. "It wouldn't possess Rogue or Chris or Logan. None of them were born in the manor, and that means none of them will be open to Evil like you were."

"But do we know that?" said Phoebe, "We don't know where Chris was born, and Rogue and Logan are from another world. Who's to say the Woogy won't choose them instead?"

"But Chris would have had to have been born on a spiritual Nexus, _this_ spiritual Nexus." I said. "Somehow, I doubt that neurotic witchlighter was born at the manor."

"Yeah, but he said he stayed with us for a lot of his childhood and babyhood," said Paige thoughtfully, "Even if we don't know who he is, the Woogy might recognize his powers and want them. I mean, maybe his mother came to us for help and gave birth to him here."

I raised my eyebrows at Paige.

"Well, it would explain why he said he grew up around us a lot," said Paige defensively. "You never know."

"I doubt it," I said, shaking my head. "If he were born in the manor, he would have told us who his mother was so we could help her deliver the baby version of him. _If_ that is how he was born, which he probably wasn't."

"Fine," said Paige, "But what about Rogue and Logan? They have powers the Woogy has never seen before. Maybe it'll want them."

"Maybe," I conceded, "It might go after their powers. But they know the spell. If it does, they'll say it and be fine."

We were all silent for a moment. "I've just realized something." said Phoebe, "Or, I think I have."

"Well, spit it out!" I said, frustrated at her long pause.

"Okay, remember the first time we saw Rogue and Logan you tried to freeze them?" said Phoebe.

"Yes," I said, not understanding where she was going with this. "It didn't work, they didn't freeze."

"Exactly," said Phoebe, "And I didn't get any premonitions off them the few times I touched them, and I should have. I mean, they're from another world, they must be carrying tons of psychic energy."

"So?" said Paige.

"So what if they're not effected by witch's powers?" asked Phoebe. "Think about it!"

"That doesn't make sense," I said, "I blasted Pyro. He's a mutant. And we cast the truth spell on Rogue."

"And Chris orbs them places," said Paige. "Power does effect them."

"I'm not so sure," said Phoebe. "Piper, you remember the demon from three years ago, the one who'd been cursed by the empath?"

"Yeah," I said slowly, "Vincerus. We vanquished him. Why?"

"Because he had the power to block witch's magic unless he wanted it to get through." said Phoebe. "What if Logan and Rogue are the same way? Rogue _wanted_ us to cast the truth spell on her, to prove to us she could be trusted. And Pyro, he wanted a fight; he didn't care about being protected. But remember when Chris fought him before? His powers had no effect. What if, unless they want our powers to work on them, they don't work?"

Paige and I were silent as we thought about this. "You realize that if that's true we are seriously screwed." I said.

Phoebe, solemnly nodded. "Yeah. Which is why I hope I can absorb the Woogy. Because if one of them does, I'm not positive the spell will work.

"Let's hope." I said, grimacing at this new and unneeded complication.

Chris's POV

I orbed Logan and Rogue first to the demon that could brew the empath-blocking potion. He was an older demon; he looked Asian and had white hair and missing teeth. His demonic powers had faded with age, and now the only reason the other demons hadn't vanquished him was for his talent in potion-brewing.

He looked up as we orbed in. "A whitelighter?" he said, more to himself then me, "What would a whitelighter be doing here?"

"_This is the demon who'll make the empath potion?"_ asked Logan in surprise, _"He looks like some old man from Chinatown."_

"_Looks aren't everything," _I told him, _"In my Future, this demon's still alive. He's smart."_

"_Is he powerful?"_ asked Rogue, as I walked up to the demon. Rogue and Logan followed.

"_He's lost most of his demonic powers, but he can make a hell of a potion."_I said. Then I focused my full attention on the demon. "What I do here is none of your concern. I've heard you know how to make an empath blocking potion?"

"Why would you desire that potion?" asked the old demon. "A whitelighter guides his witch; he does not betray her."

"Again, none of your concern." I snapped. "What I do is my own business. Can you make the potion?"

"Yes." said the demon after a pause. "But I'm missing a rare ingredient, and it's very difficult to obtain. Without it, the potion would be useless."

"What's the ingredient?" I asked, hoping it was something simple.

"The Kotochul egg from the swampland." said the demon in his annoyingly slow voice. I closed my eyes in anger before opening them. Rogue and Logan felt my frustration.

"_What's so hard about getting the egg?"_ asked Logan.

"_Kotochul are a very strong clan of demons who live in swamps. They're similar to manticores, but more like a swamp-like version of them."_ I said, _"They're fast, powerful, and hard to kill. Their eggs are protected fiercely."_

"_We'll help you get it." _said Rogue at once.

"_Later,"_ I said, remembering that we couldn't take too long, or the sisters would wonder where we were. _"Let's get the ingredients for the potion for Pyro. We'll worry about this potion when we have more time." _I turned to the demon. "I'll be back." I said threateningly. "Make sure you get everything else ready."

I took Rogue and Logan's hands and we orbed out. I made us reform in the clearing that led to the demonic Market; I had a contact there who would get me what I needed.

Phoebe's POV

Chris, Rogue, and Logan orbed back about ten minutes later. Rogue was holding a bag full of herbs. She handed them to Paige as she, Chris, and Logan released hands. Chris handed me the instructions for making the potion, which he had written while he was away.

"Any trouble?" asked Piper.

"A demon tried to buy Logan's claws," he said with a shrug, "And got them in his chest."

Piper nodded. "What about Pyro?" I asked. "He didn't try to attack you or anything?"

Rogue shook her head. "No. We agree with you that he'll try to absorb the Nexus."

I stood up and walked towards the table, looking for a pot, and didn't find one. "Hey, Chris," I called, feeling annoyed. "Where's the pot?"

"Sorry," said Chris, "I didn't make one."

"Paige, could you summon our pot, please?" asked Piper, walking over to me.

Paige nodded. "Pot!" she called, and our pot appeared in her hands. She walked over to the table and put the pot on it. "Chris would you mind creating a stove?" she asked.

Chris looked suitably embarrassed, and was quiet for a moment, before chanting a spell:

"**In this place and in this hour  
****I call upon the Ancient Power  
****Give us a stove with flame to heat  
****So that Pyro we can defeat."**

Next to the wooden table, a modern stove materialized. "Nice spell," I said. Considering he'd been improvising, it had been pretty good. Piper, Paige and I made the potion, while Logan, Chris, and Rogue sat on one of the mattresses and talked mind to mind. I could feel that they were talking because of my empathy, but I didn't follow the feeling. If I did, I would have been able to eavesdrop on their minds.

"... and a pinch of black pepper," said Paige, reading off the last ingredient. Piper threw it in the pot, and a burst pf smoke came out of the pot as the potion exploded; it was ready.

"It's ready!" I called, but Chris, Rogue, and Logan had already stood up and walked over to us.

"So now we go to the manor?" asked Rogue.

"As soon as Leo comes back," I said.

We might need Leo's Healing abilities; Pyro was stronger then any demon we'd faced before. Maybe he was even stronger then the Source and Shax together. Chris seemed to think he was, although I wasn't positive. Pyro's biggest threat lay in the fact that his powers were flexible. He could control _all_ forms of fire, and our powers weren't able to be used so fluidly.

"Leo!" called Piper, and he orbed down right away. When he reformed, he looked anxious and impatient.

"Are you ready?" he asked, and I, Piper, Paige, Rogue, Chris, and Logan all nodded.

"Wyatt's safe Up There?" asked Piper.

Leo nodded, then went back to the problem at hand. "You have a plan?" he asked.

"Leo, don't worry so much," I said, "We always have a plan."

Leo nodded. "You're right, I'm sorry. Do you want me to come with you, or will you call me when you need me?"

"He should come," said Chris, "We might need to orb away quickly, just in case this doesn't work."

"It'll work." said Piper, as she took Leo's hand. I took Paige's hand, and Logan and Rogue took Chris's.

"Orb to the basement first," said Chris, "If he's trying to get the Nexus, he'll be down there."

"Will the Book be safe here?" I asked, remembering suddenly that we would be leaving it unprotected.

"Don't worry," said Chris with a grim smile. "The spells of protection will be around this place as long as I'm alive. And I'm not planning on dying any time soon."

I felt worry from both Rogue and Logan's minds, but it was quickly quelled. I also felt a strange emotion from Chris as he looked at Piper, Paige and I.

"Let's go," he said. I couldn't pin down the emotion, though it felt familiar.

We orbed.

Rouge's POV

We reformed in the basement, and I quickly took off my gloves. I lightly touched both Chris's and Logan's hands, held on for a second, and let go. I felt their powers in me.

"Well, well, well," taunted Pyro. I could dimly make him out in the darkness of the basement. "I wondered when you would show up. Now I get to watch you die." Then Pyro chanted a spell in Latin:

"**Natum ad a necral  
****Dona in tan la noc!" **

Suddenly, something burst from a hole in the floor, which I had just seen. The something was thick like smoke, and dark.

"It's the Nexus!" called Piper, over the blast of wind as the Nexus emerged from the hole in the floor. Phoebe stepped forward, offering herself up to the Nexus.

Pyro was laughing, madness in his voice. "It won't choose you, witch! Why would the Nexus choose to possess _your_ powers when mine are so much stronger?"

But something was wrong. The Nexus wavered. It seemed to float back and forth between Phoebe and Pyro. I felt Chris's panic in my mind, and Logan's raw determination. I sensed that if something didn't happen soon Logan would attack Pyro with his claws, or Chris would attack him with magic.

I stepped forward, and decided to use Chris's power. I flicked at Pyro with telekinesis, but nothing happened. Logan unsheathed his claws, and got ready to move.

Suddenly the Nexus changed direction and flew at me. I stepped back and put my hands in front of my face, willing myself to orb away. But something was wrong; before I could orb, the Nexus was rushing inside me, pushing me onto the ground. It flew into my body, through my mouth, nose and eyes, it forced itself inside me. It was like oily mud was entering me, when suddenly it stopped and I felt... power. I stood up; my vision was perfect, I didn't even notice the darkness.

I felt strong; power was brimming inside me, ready to burst out of my skin in a moment. I saw Pyro standing, the laughter frozen on his face was quickly replaced by a look of hatred. I looked at the sisters and saw confusion and worry. I glanced at Logan and Chris and saw fear. I breathed faster, feeling whole.

"_Rogue!"_ said Chris's mind voice, _"Are you okay?"_

"_What happened?"_ asked Logan.

"Never better." I said out loud, laughing at my voice, which was now deeper, though not male.

"Not for long!" said Pyro as he threw a fireball at me. It passed through my stomach, and my laughter froze. I felt rage fill me, and a new voice entered my mind.

"_Yes, yes,"_ crooned the voice, deep and powerful. _"Feel the rage. This boy _dared_ to hurt you. _Dared_ to think he was strong. Hurt him like he hurt you with his betrayal, Rogue. Make him suffer with your rage!"_

Yes, of course. The voice made perfect sense. Pyro had hurt me, and he still tried to hurt me. I would make him pay. I thrust out my hand, and a dark blast of wind left it, slamming into Pyro and throwing him against a basement wall. I laughed as he struggled against his wind. I laughed as he tried to escape, to light a fire. I laughed at his weakness, and reveled in the glory of my power.

"Rogue what are you doing?" demanded Logan, grabbing my arm where the power was coming out. "We're supposed to use the potion!"

I felt anger. How dare Logan interfere! How dare he stop me from punishing the one who hurt me! How dare he keep my from my revenge! I stopped the flow of power, and punched Logan in the face. The power inside lent me strength, and my punch sent him flying into another wall.

"Don't interfere!" I said.

"_Ignore the Logan; he is weak, and not worthy of your notice."_ crooned the voice again. _"Take Pyro's powers, Rogue. His power can become yours. You can hold mastery over flames. Mastery over the foolish boy who would spite you! Take his powers. Make him pay. Kill him."_

Yes. Death would be a deserving punishment. In his death, I would gain his powers, and become stronger. Mastery over fire was a splendid power, and I would take it. I forced my power out at Pyro again. He had gotten up, but fell to the floor as my power assaulted him. _My_ power. My beautiful power...

"Piper, she's being controlled by the Nexus!" I dimly heard Phoebe call. But she was wrong. I was not being controlled; this was what I should have done all along. I was whole and powerful. I felt Chris trying to talk to me mind-to-mind. I blocked him. He was annoying me. Suddenly he tackled me to the ground.

I expected pain where he tackled me and where I fell, but I felt nothing. I was beyond pain, I was so full of power. He pushed me on the ground, his hands on my shoulders.

"_Rogue, snap out of it! The Nexus will consume you if you don't!"_ he yelled out loud, and in my mind.

Why was everyone intent on stopping my revenge? I heard Phoebe, Paige, and Piper chanting the spell to get rid of the Woogy, but it didn't work. I didn't want it to.

"_They don't love you, Rogue,"_ whispered the deep voice of the Woogy. _"They don't care about you. They will betray you. All they care about is your power, not you. They want to steal your power. Don't let them. Fight them. Make them sorry."_

Yes. The Woogy must be right; how could a voice so beautiful lie? Chris was pinning me to the floor. He was trying to stop me.

"_He wants your power,"_ said the Woogy.

I wouldn't let him have my power. It was MINE! "Traitor!" I yelled, my voice a blend of my own and the Woogy's.

Power blasted out of my hands, into Chris. The force of my power sent him flying into the ceiling, and he fell back onto the floor, curling up in pain. I got up and turned to face Logan, who was coming towards me again. I blasted him, and he was pushed into a wall again. I didn't release the flow of power. I turned to the sisters and opened up my mouth. Power flew out of it and crashed into the sisters and Leo, scattering them, and knocking them all to the ground. I closed my mouth and turned to Pyro. He was standing up again.

I let out a wordless scream to show my hate for him, releasing my rage as my power crashed into his body yet again. He was pushed against the wall, and I saw him struggle to breath. I felt the exaltation of the Woogy and me, and we laughed together. I loved the power, flowing though my veins, making me feel more alive then I'd ever been. Pyro was barely moving now. I laughed harder in glee.

Suddenly a box crashed into me, it's momentum knocking me down again as Chris staggered up, and my power directed towards Logan was released. Chris had thrown the box at me with his powers. How dare he still attack me! How dare he fight me! He should respect me! Fear me! I was more powerful then anyone! I would kill him with his own powers.

I tapped into his borrowed powers and clenched my fist, squeezing his throat with his powers. Still on top of me, he choked, grasping at his throat.

"_Rogue, don't do this!"_ he thought desperately, as I squeezed his throat telekinetically. Killing him with his own powers had a lovely symmetry to it. I felt the Woogy agree.

Logan came out of nowhere, and moved Chris off me, but then _he_ pinned me down. _"Rogue, let him go!"_

"_He wants your power too," _said the soothing voice of the Woogy.

"No!" I said out loud. "I won't let you take my power."

"_I don't give a damn about your power!"_ said Logan, _"Let him go, Rogue!"_

"You're lying!" I said, not releasing Chris, as he writhed on the floor, desperate to breathe.

Suddenly, Logan stabbed my arm that had been channeling Chris's power. I felt no pain, but I was surprised enough to stop choking Chris. Logan took out his claws and my arm healed itself instantly. Chris gasped and coughed. I pushed Logan off of me, and my power added to my strength. He landed six feet away, as Chris slowly staggered up, clutching his throat. I stood up, full of rage.

"_They're hurting you, Rogue,"_ crooned the Woogy. _"Punish them."_

"_Don't listen to him, Rogue!" _said Chris inside my mind._ "He wants your power."_

"_He gave me power." _I said, confused.

"_Rogue, look at what he's making you do!"_ said Logan, _"I would never betray you."_

"_I would never hurt you!"_ said Chris,_ "The Woogy's trying to take over you!"_

I shook my head. The Woogy wouldn't lie. His voice was too beautiful to lie. He gave me power. He _cared_ about me. Didn't he?

"_Damn it, Rogue!"_ said Logan, _"Look at me!"_

And as though Logan had a power of his own, I was forced to look into his face and into his eyes. His eyes were full of pain, and fear, and worry, and... love? I looked away, and looked at Chris. There was blood leaking out of the corner of his mouth. I had done that, when I squeezed his throat. I saw the pain in his eyes, and the fear and love as well. Not love as one would love a spouse, but the love of friends. Logan and Chris loved me. I looked over them again. I could see that there were bruises and cuts on other parts of Chris's body. I had done that. I had nearly killed them both.

I clutched at my hair. I looked at the sisters and Leo. All of them were lying unconscious on the ground. Phoebe was bleeding out of one of her ears. I had done that. I let out a cry of grief, and I felt the Woogy's rage. I wasn't listening to him anymore.

"_You are mine!"_ said the Woogy, his voice now dark and terrible.

"No," I whimpered. No, I wouldn't let him make me hurt them.

"_Say the spell!"_ said Logan.

I felt pain wrack my body as the Woogy punished me for my rebellion. I let out a cry.

"_Come on, Rogue!"_ said Chris, and then he and Logan spoke together in my mind.

"I am light, I am--" I joined in and all three of us said the spell together in my mind. I clung to their voices, the only thing keeping me from wanting to use the Woogy's power. We said the spell we had altered, in case something like this happened, together.

"_**--one too strong to fight.  
**__**Go back to the Dark where shadows dwell.  
**__**We defeat you with this spell.  
**__**So go away, and leave our sight  
**__**And take with you this endless night."**_

I felt the power swell inside me and come out. It came out of my mouth, nose and eyes, into the floor of the basemen from which it had come up. I opened my mouth as wide as I could and tried to push the power out of me. As the last dregs of it left, I fell to the ground. My last thought was relief that Chris and Logan were okay, before I fell into unconsciousness.

**A/N: So, did you like the chappie? I bet none of you were expecting that, huh? Tell me what you think, and what you think will happen next. Press that little button on the left, and REVIEW!**


	18. A Single Tear

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or XMen.**

**To My Readers: Okay, I am so, so sorry for not updating. You have every right to kill me, as long as you bring me back to life so I can actually finish the story. I had writers block, and was involved with tons of other stuff (including lack of sleep, too much homework, immense stress, and on the positive side, a girlfriend). But I will spare you the details of my over-dramatic life. Again, I'm so, so sorry, and will try to update more regularly. But I can't promise anything.**

Chris's POV

Rogue fell onto the ground. I was filled with relief; the Woogy was gone, sealed again beneath the floor. Rogue was safe, and so were we. She had nearly killed us. I scanned her physically with my mind and eyes. She seemed okay; at least on the outside. I turned quickly to Piper, Phoebe, and Paige. I walked quickly over to them and bent down, rubbing a trickle of blood off of my chin. All three of them were knocked unconscious, and so was Leo. I saw that Phoebe was bleeding out of one of her ears. I moved over to Leo and started shaking him.

"Leo!" I said, shaking his shoulder roughly. Leo didn't respond. "Leo!" I said, louder this time, my voice raspy. Logan came over and crouched next to me.

"_I'll wake him, you make sure the others are okay."_ he said gruffly in my mind.

I nodded and walked over to Paige. She didn't seem to be bleeding anywhere, but she looked bruised. Satisfied that she would be okay, I turned to Piper. I ran my hand gently over her face when something caught my eye. There was something sticking out of her stomach, a thin piece of wood. Oh, God, she'd been impaled. _Mom_ had been impaled! The shard of wood was sticking out of the area where her gut would be. If her guts weren't Healed soon, they would spill out and she would die.

I couldn't stem the panic that now flooded me. I grabbed Piper's hand. "Oh please, mom," I whispered. "Not again. Not now. Don't go. Don't leave me again."

Logan caught my panic and looked up at me. I practically ran to Leo's prone form. Logan stood up, out of my way, and walked over to Piper.

"_She's been impaled,"_ he said, _"But it shouldn't be fatal, as long as it stays inside her until Leo wakes up. Otherwise she'll bleed to death. The wood's stopping the blood from coming out."_

I slapped Leo across the face, and he moaned. I slapped him harder, and his eyelids fluttered before opening. I pulled him, still groggy, to his feet.

"Piper's hurt," I told him, my throat coming out sore and raspy from when Rogue had nearly choked me, and from my fear.

"Piper," gasped Leo, as his eyes widened, and all traces of tiredness left them. He ran to her side, kneeling down next to her, extending his hands.

"Wait," Logan said, taking a step forward. "You gotta take out the wood out first. Then Heal her."

Leo lightly ran his hands over Piper's stomach. "It's not sticking out enough for me to use it; Chris, you'll have to take it out with your powers."

I nodded, but my eyes glanced back to Phoebe; she was bleeding more and more. The entire right side of her face was covered in blood now. "Phoebe first," I said, worry, guilt, and fear clenching my heart. "She's hurt more. Piper can hold on until we Heal Phoebe."

Leo looked at me for a moment in disbelief, but then turned to Phoebe. Without a word he extended his hands over her and started to Heal. The golden light shined on her head as the blood disappeared. Suddenly Phoebe sat up with a gasp, panting, and clutching her head. Leo stopped Healing, and then turned to Piper.

He turned to me. "Now." he said, and then turned to Piper, ready to Heal. I saw Phoebe's confused look, and then realization that something was wrong. "Piper," she gasped.

I flicked my hand, tapping into my powers. The shard of wood flew out of Piper's body, and clattered onto the floor. Leo began to Heal Piper, and I watched him with anxious eyes. I was dimly aware of Phoebe waking up Paige in the background.

"_She'll be fine."_ chided Logan gently. _"Stop worrying."_

Suddenly Piper gasped, and opened her eyes. I sighed in relief as Leo helped her stand up. I had to struggle to hold back tears of relief. I'd been so afraid. "W-what happened?" she asked, her eyes moving around the dark room. "Where's the Woogy?"

"_Logan, you explain."_ I said. It hurt to speak right now, and I knew that if I was speaking, Phoebe might sense my love for her if she focused on me and Paige, or Piper. I was so happy they were alive. But I was also worried. How would they feel about Rogue? Would they still trust her? And the more pressing question; how would Rogue feel? She had nearly killed us... the guilt she would feel would probably torment her. Logan and I would have to help her get through that.

"Chris and I managed to get through to Rogue," Logan said, and he glanced at Rogue's form on the floor before turning his gaze back to Piper. "We said the spell together, and the Woogy went back into the floor. We saw you were hurt so we woke up Leo."

I walked over to the prone form of Pyro, only now remembering him. I kept one part of my mind focused on Rogue, in case she was hurt inside her mind when she woke up. Unless we were dreaming, sleep usually blocked out Logan's, Rogue's and my mental speech. I wanted to make sure Rogue would be okay.

"_Logan, ask Leo to check on Rogue,"_ I mind-spoke, looking over at Pyro, lying on the ground.

"Leo, can you have a look at Rogue?" asked Logan. Leo nodded, and I saw him and Logan walk together to Rogue.

Piper, Phoebe, and Paige were standing in a circle, talking to each other. Probably about Rogue, Logan, the Woogy, and I. I wondered if any of them even noticed that my throat was raw, and that Logan was talking, in essence, for me. I wondered whether any of them noticed that Logan and I'd been hurt. Well, in all fairness, Logan's injuries had already healed themselves. But shouldn't some unconscious motherly part of Piper notice the slight blood on my throat or dripping out of the corner of my mouth? I sighed, pushing away these thoughts.

I put my fingers to Pyro's neck and felt a pulse. It was strong; Pyro had managed to survive. I had almost wished otherwise, but I knew that if he had died, Rogue would have blamed herself for his death.

"_Leo said Rogue's fine psychically,"_ said Logan, _"But we'll see what she's like when she wakes up."_

"_She might sleep awhile,"_ I said, _"The Woogy didn't want to let her go. She was deeply possessed, and now her mind has to recover. She'll be fine."_

I heard footsteps behind me and turned. It was Piper and Phoebe. Paige was talking to Leo and Logan. "Is he ..." Phoebe asked, trying to ask whether Pyro was dead. I shook my head.

"He's alive," I managed to croak, "Just knocked out." My voice now resembled a frog on its deathbed, and I winced at the sound of it.

"Chris, what happened to your voice?" asked Piper, looking up at me, then, "Are you bleeding?"

Part of me smiled. Some part of Piper did care! Some part of her, deep down inside, must know or suspect that I was close to her in the Future. But she would never guess that I was her son, and never guess how close we had been. I held in a sigh mixed with hope and frustration.

"It's nothing," I croaked, put Piper turned to Leo.

"Leo, can you Heal Chris's throat please?" she asked, walking over to the light switch and flicking it on. I squinted and blinked the light out of my eyes.

Suddenly I was aware of Phoebe looking at me strangely. "What?" I asked, as Leo walked over. He held up one of his hands to my throat and began to Heal me. I closed my eyes as the pain left my throat and the swelling vanished. The blood disappeared. I felt better, like my throat was back to normal.

"Thanks," I said, as Leo put down his hand.

"No problem." he said, and in the background, I was aware of Rogue being enveloped I white lights.

"_Paige orbed her to the upstairs sofa,"_ said Logan, sounding worried. _"I'm going to wait with her until she wakes up. Paige is going to get more of that knockout potion for when Pyro comes around."_

With that said, Logan walked up the stair out of the basement, and Paige orbed away. I turned back to Phoebe who was still looking at me strangely.

"What?" I asked again, this time, my voice sounding normal.

Phoebe frowned. "You keep giving off this emotion, and I can't identify it, but it seems so _familiar_ somehow! It's getting on my nerves." She put one hand on her hip in frustration, but I froze in panic. She was feeling my love. She was feeling the love I had for her, Paige, and Piper. It was familiar because she loved them much in the same way, just as sisters, not as aunts. I couldn't let her figure out that emotion!

"Okay, now you're panicking." she said, frustration creasing her brow. "What's so special about this emotion anyway? I just want to know what it is."

I took a deep breath. I had to calm down. I had to get that empath blocking potion right away. "It's nothing important," I said, more calmly then I felt.

Phoebe started to give me a look, but then Pyro began to stir. Phoebe turned to him, and punched him in the face. Pyro fell back into unconsciousness. I raised my eyebrows, and Phoebe looked at me, embarrassed.

"Well, Paige didn't bring back the potion yet." she said defensively, with a smile playing around the edge of her lips, but mostly concealed. I grinned widely, and struggled not to laugh. Phoebe grinned openly now.

"Effective," I said, giving her a mock-serious nod. "Quick, hopefully painful; all in all, a neat piece of work." Maybe Phoebe would be distracted by humor.

Phoebe rolled her eyes, but smiled crookedly. It seemed to have worked; she was no longer focused on me. Piper and Leo walked over to us. "Leo had an idea about how to trap Pyro, so he can't use his powers on us."

I turned to Leo, interested. "How?"

Leo looked a little awkward. "Well, it's you, Chris, that gave me the idea. When I was trapped in Valhalla, the Valkyrie's cage stopped my powers. If we lock Pyro in the cage, his powers should become unusable."

I exhaled very slowly. I had never actually confessed to having trapped Leo in Valhalla, and I wasn't about to now. But, the idea could work. It was no better or worse then any other idea. "It might work," I said, keeping my voice as level as I could. "Why don't you contact the Valkyries and see if they're open to the idea? I'm going to check on Rogue."

With that said, I orbed out and reformed in the living room where Rogue was lying on the sofa, Logan sitting next to her. He turned and looked at me as I reformed. _"Tough time with the old man?"_ he asked, easily talking in his mental voice.

"_Could've been worse,"_ I said, sitting down opposite him. I nodded my head at Rogue._ "Is she gonna be waking up any time soon?"_

"_I don't want to touch her," _said Logan,_ "I don't want to disturb her."_

"_It's probably better that she gets some sleep," _I agreed, but I felt worried all the same. The absence of Rogue's waking presence in my mind was disturbing. I felt as though a part of me was absent. It was an unpleasant, _hollow _sort of feeling.

I heard footsteps, and Logan and I looked up. It was Piper and Phoebe. "How is she?" Piper asked, referring to Rogue.

"Still sleeping." I said, noting that Leo wasn't with them. "Where's Leo?"

"He orbed Pyro away to Valhalla," said Phoebe, "He said he knows some warriors that would be willing to help."

I nodded. "Where's Paige?" asked Logan.

"Oh, she went with Leo, to make sure Pyro didn't get away." said Piper. Then she moved closer to Logan and I, and sat down on the sofa opposite us. "What happened, exactly, after we were knocked out downstairs?"

Phoebe moved next to her, and both looked at us. I reached out with my mind towards Logan, and felt his mental nod. We would tell them.

"Rogue attacked Logan and I. For a while, I think she was completely controlled by the Woogy. She nearly killed Pyro, and tried to strangle me when I stopped her from finishing him off." I swallowed. "Logan saved me, and then she came back to herself. We managed to get inside her mind –the Woogy had been blocking us- and we said the spell inside her mind. We made an alternate version that would work for us, in case something like this happened," I said, cutting off the question on Phoebe's face.

"You knew something like this would happen?" asked Piper, looking from Logan to me.

"We guessed," said Logan. "There was a chance the Woogy might have gone after any one of us."

There was a pause. "So then what?" asked Phoebe.

"The Woogy was expelled from Rogue and was sealed in the floor again." I said. "You and Phoebe were hurt, so we woke up Leo. He Healed you, and now here we are."

In the conversation, I left out the fear I'd felt, worried that Piper might never have woken up. That Phoebe could have bled to death. That Rogue could have been injured when she expelled the Woogy. That Leo might not have woken up in time. There was so much fear, so much danger that had been courted and avoided. And it all could have gone so wrong. I felt like my heart could burst with relief that things had worked out.

"Wow, Chris," said Phoebe suddenly. "Your relief could fill up over a hundred balloons. Try to keep it down, will you?"

A small smile quirked at my lips, before I focused on lowering the intensity of my relief. Phoebe nodded and smiled. "Thanks," she said, patting me on the arm.

Suddenly Phoebe gasped. Her eyes closed, and her shoulders tensed. She was having a premonition... and it had to be about me. Her hand was unconsciously gripping my arm harder, her fingers firmly anchored inside my skin. It hurt, but I didn't move or say anything, afraid of interrupting the vision. Her eyes opened suddenly, and, realizing that she was holding my arm, she jerkily let go. She leaned back into the the sofa, clutching at the sides of her head.

"What did you see?" asked Piper, leaning closer to Phoebe.

"I'm not exactly sure," said Phoebe, looking up at Piper, and taking her hands off her head.

"Do you know where it was?" I asked, and Phoebe's eyes narrowed in concentration.

"I think it was in Valhalla," she said haltingly, "In that room where they kept Leo. You know, with the big cage."

"What happened there?" asked Logan, leaning forward, "Was it a demon?"

"No, it's just, I've never had a premonition like that before." said Phoebe slowly, still sounding confused. "It... The vision was about Chris." I held my breath. What had she seen? What did she know? "He was standing in that chamber, alone. Or, I think he was alone. There _must_ have been other people there, but I could only see him. Then it was like he froze; I mean, he just stiffened, and a look of unbearable pain and something else came over his face. I think... I _think_ the other emotion was love. And a single tear slid down one of his cheeks," Phoebe traced her own cheek with her finger. "And he orbed away."

I felt a wave of confusion. What did that mean? What would happen that was so bad, that it wouldn't hurt me physically, but would make me cry? I hadn't cried in years. What would make me orb away? That vision... it didn't make any sense.

"Phoebe, that doesn't make sense," said Piper, shaking her head. "Are you sure that's what you saw?"

"Yeah, positive." said Phoebe. "And I know it doesn't make sense, but I saw it. I must have seen it for a reason; all we have to do is figure out what that reason is."

"Whatever that vision means, it's not important right now." I said. Logan nodded.

"We should make sure that Pyro really can't use his magic in Valhalla. We can't risk him getting out." said Logan calmly, but firmly.

"I'll orb you there," I said, standing up. Phoebe and Piper stood up too. It was then that Rogue began to stir, moaning slightly. In an instant, Logan and I were at her side.

"_Hey, Rogue. How are you?"_ said Logan gently.

"_Are you okay? You had us worried."_ I said.

"_Logan, Chris."_ she said, looking at Logan and I. Then her eyes started to tear up. _"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean too, honest. It was just an accident."_

I cut her off before she could continue._ "It's not your fault, Rogue. The Woogy could have possessed any one of us."_

"_You were strong to fight him off." _said Logan._ "We're proud of you."_

"Rogue, honey, are you okay?" asked Piper, leaning over Rogue.

"We took Pyro to Valhalla, we just want to make sure he can't run away." said Phoebe.

Rogue nodded, but looked at Logan. _"I didn't... kill him?"_ I heard the hope in her voice. She didn't want to be a murderer.

"_No,"_ said Logan, _"He survived. Leo and Paige orbed him to Valhalla to see if the cage there can stop his powers from working."_

"_I'm going to orb Piper and Phoebe to them,"_ I said, _"We have to decide what we're going to do with __Pyro."_

"_Please don't leave me," _said Rogue, silent tears coursing down her cheeks. _"I don't want to be alone. I nearly killed -- I nearly killed them and _you_. Please... I don't want to be weak, but I just don't want to be alone."_

"_I have to go." _I said, as gently as I could._ "I need to bring them."_

"_I'll stay," _said Logan to Rogue._ "Don't worry, I'll be right here."_

"_You can talk to me mind-to-mind," _I said._ "All I have to do is bring them there, and I'll be back as soon as I can."_

Rogue nodded. I turned to Piper and Phoebe, who had watched this silent exchange without saying a word. I saw Phoebe take her hand off Piper's arm. She had probably sensed with her empathic abilities what Logan, Rogue, and I had been doing, and she stopped Piper from interrupting. I gave her a grateful look.

"Let's go," I said, holding out my hands. Phoebe took one, Piper the other. I felt a surge of love for Piper and Phoebe, which I quickly quelled, before Phoebe could feel it. I orbed us onto Valhalla, my target was just outside the cave with the cage in it.

Piper's POV

As soon as we reformed, two Valkyries appeared next to us, but they were unarmed and were smiling. I recognized them. They were Mist and Kara, the two right-hands of Freya, who had helped me when I'd turned into a Valkyrie.

"Mist, Kara," I said in slight surprise. I hadn't expected to see them. Phoebe and I let go of Chris's hands.

"Piper," Kara greeted. "Leo explained everything to us." We put the boy in the cage, and Freya is talking with Leo and Paige. They're all watching him."

"Chris," greeted Mist with a small smile. "How are you?"

"Fine," said Chris, "How are things here?"

"Three of our Valkyries have gone missing," said Kara. "Leysa, Arath, and Krea. Have you seen them?"

Chris looked thoughtful, and he closed his eyes, searching his memory. "No," he said, shaking his head. "I'm sorry."

"Are they alright?" I asked. I didn't know these Valkyries, but I didn't want them to be hurt. "Could they have turned mortal again, or something?"

"It's possible," said Kara, "But unlikely. They were probably vanquished."

I closed my eyes for a moment in sadness, but Mist took my hand. "It's alright, Piper," she said. I opened my eyes, and she looked calmly into mine. "Many demons seek to kill Valkyries, to sabotage our plans for the Final World Battle. We accept this; it's part of our destiny, and we're not afraid to die."

I nodded, and Phoebe sighed. Chris looked somber, as well. There was a short silence, which Chris broke. "Can we see Freya?" he asked, bringing our attention back to Pyro.

Kara and Mist nodded. "Of course," said Mist. "Come with us."

Chris, Phoebe, and I followed Mist and Kara into the cavern. The two Valkyries branched off in a different direction, leaving the cavern. Chris, Phoebe and I walked to Leo and Paige, who were talking softly to Freya. They looked like they were arguing.

"... Leo, I don't think you understand. Yes, he is young, but he is also evil." said Freya, gesturing to Pyro, who was lying on his back in the cage in the center of the cavern. The swords and shields had been taken out of the cage.

"Yes, but we have to know what he wants before we can vanquish him." said Leo, "If we get rid of him now, we won't know who sent him or--"

"He's too dangerous to be kept alive!" said Freya loudly, cutting Leo off. "From the way you've described him, he has the power to kill the Charmed Ones, us, maybe even the Elders. I don't want to take the risk that the cage cannot contain his powers."

"Wait, you don't know whether the cage will block his powers?" I interrupted, looking from the cage, to Leo, to Freya. "Isn't there a way to make sure?"

Freya shook her head, softening her gaze as she looked at me. "His powers are different, outside of my knowledge. I can't be sure of anything concerning him, and he is a risk because of this. As a risk, I believe he should be eliminated, vanquished."

"I disagree." said Leo, turning to me. "Piper, he was sent by someone; if we vanquish him, who's to say his master won't send someone else? We have to question him."

There was a short silence. Both Leo and Freya made sense, in their own ways. I couldn't be sure which choice to follow. Then Chris spoke.

"I agree with Freya," he said, crossing his arms. "Pyro's very, very powerful. I think we should vanquish him; he'd never cooperate with us anyway, so we wouldn't lose anything."

"We need --" Leo began, but Chris cut him off.

"No, Leo. We don't _need_ to have anything to do with him, except hurry him along his journey to the Wasteland." said Chris. "He's too dangerous. You know this, Leo."

"You can vanquish him afterwards," said Leo, "But let me question him first. I have to know who sent him. He could tell us who's after Wyatt. Isn't that what you want?"

"He's too dangerous," insisted Chris, his face stony. "You don't know what he's capable of."

"Okay, how about this," said Phoebe, breaking the tension that had been slowly building like a wall of ice. "Leo talks to him for ten minutes, and then we'll vanquish him."

Pyro groaned, and shifted his position slightly; he was about to wake up. "Fine," said Leo curtly, looking back at Pyro, and Chris.

"Make sure it's just ten minutes," said Chris, as he also gave Phoebe a curt nod.

"Very well," said Freya, and we all walked closer to the cage, watching Pyro. Pyro stirred, and then seemed to come to full consciousness. He sat up very quickly, and pushed himself to his feet. He grinned, taunting, mocking us, for all that he was trapped.

"What?" He said, "Don't have the guts to kill me?"

"Oh, shut up," I said, looking disgustedly at the mutant. He smiled at me. "Look, you don't have long to live, so you'd better tell us who sent you."

Pyro started laughing hysterically, holding his ribs in mirth. "You don't know! You fools, you have no idea!" He started laughing again, and his laugh had an insane edge to it, a madness that made his laugh even harder.

"Just vanquish him, he won't tell us anything." said Chris, glaring at the mutant.

As suddenly as his laughing had begun, it ceased, and Pyro looked coldly at Chris. "Of course," he said scathingly, "Tell them to kill me. You're afraid, witchlighter, afraid I'll tell them all your secrets. I don't know why they even trust you."

I ignored Pyro determinedly. He had already tried this tack, to make us distrust Chris, once before. "Don't you have anything new?" said Phoebe, echoing my thoughts.

"Who sent you?" demanded Leo, leaning even closer to the cage. "Tell me!" he said, when Pyro smiled again.

"What, and betray my master?" he asked mockingly. "Nah, that'd mean I was helping you. No way I'd do _that_. But I will tell you something else, something you'd be fools to ignore."

"Don't trust him," said Chris suddenly. I turned to him, and saw that his face was tense and pale. Phoebe's face turned alarmed as she looked at him and sensed his feelings.

"Chris, what's wrong?" she asked, looking at him with concern.

Before Chris could speak, Pyro did. "I'm about to reveal his secret, and he's afraid he can't cover up what I say. He tells you not to trust me only because everything he's told you has been a lie."

"Where's the vanquishing potion?" demanded Chris, watching Pyro. "Piper, where is it?"

"Piper?" asked Pyro, cutting off my response, that I had th vials in my pocket. "Now, don't be rude. Didn't you mean to call her 'mother'?"

The only thing that broke the silence was Chris's now-harsh breathing. "Shut up!" said Chris. Pyro's grin widened. My brain seemed to freeze. What the hell was happening? Chris couldn't be...no.

"Look at him, witch," Pyro said to me, and I did. I had to be sure. There was no way Chris was my son. None at all...but I had to be sure. I wasn't even aware of anyone else in the room anymore, not even Leo. I felt like I couldn't breathe.

"Look at him," continued Pyro. "He has Leo's eyes, your hair. He's got the Halliwell stubbornness. The same telekinesis that Prue and your grandmother had. Chris never told you his full name did he? I'll tell it to you; Chris Perry Halliwell. Your second son. How else did you think he knew so much about you and your family? You are his mother, and Leo is his father."

Chris's eyes were wide with fear, and he almost seemed to be paralyzed. Suddenly, he broke out of his paralysis, and anger and fear lit his face. He flung out his arm, and a sword which had been taken out of the cage went flying through the air. It flew through the bars of the cage, and impaled Pyro, lodging in his chest.

I heard Leo gasp, and I couldn't breathe. Chris? My son? I didn't know, but at the same time I did. He was mine...Oh god, how had this happened?! Surely, there must be some misunderstanding...but at the same time, I knew there wasn't. I was speechless, my brain frozen in shock.

"Oh my god," whispered Phoebe, "The emotion, it's love! The emotion I couldn't identify...it was love!"

Chris looked as though his worst nightmares had come to life. He was backing away from the cage; I took a step forward, and Chris stiffened as he looked at the floor near my feet, unable or unwilling to meet my eyes. A look of unbearable pain and unbearable love, the mysterious emotion, came over his face and I felt like my heart would break.

"Chris?" I whispered tentatively, silently asking for something. I didn't even know what I was asking. A single tear rolled down Chris's cheek, and he orbed away.

"My premonition," whispered Phoebe, her hand covering her mouth in sadness, now that she understood what she had seen.

Suddenly, I couldn't take it anymore. I started to cry, and I pushed away Freya's, Phoebe's and Leo's arms. I cried until I felt like my heart had shattered. Then I fell into the peacefulness of unconsciousness.

**A/N: Alright; there's the chappie. I hope you liked it and forgive me for not updating in a while. Review, please!**


	19. The Event That Never Was

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. **

**Okay guys, I know I'm horrible for not updating sooner, and I really am sorry. I don't really have a good excuse, so I'm not gonna babble one at you. For those who are actually reading this; thank you. I hope I make this story worth your while.**

Phoebe's POV

After Piper collapsed, I ran to the Valkyrie's cage and pulled it open. Leo and Freya called out to me, but I ignored them. If there was the chance, however small, that Pyro was alive, maybe he would know something else. It didn't matter what, but there had to be something to make this _right_ again! Pyro was somehow still alive. I ran to him and kneeled in the sandy floor of the cage. I grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him up into a sitting position. Fighting my own tears, I looked into his eyes, which were quickly glazing over.

"How did you know this?" I said, my voice raspy with suppressed emotions. "Why did you do this?"

Pyro chuckled weakly, and blood dripped out of his mouth. He looked at me with his leering eyes, and didn't answer. I shook him.

"Tell me! What else do you know?" I demanded, anger burning in me like a flame. Pyro chuckled again.

"I'll never tell..." he said in a haunting voice. "See you in hell, witch."

And with that, he breathed out, a rattling noise leaving his throat. His eyes stared fixed now, unmoving, at my face. Unlike demons, he did not burst into flame or explode upon his death. In this way, probably the only way, he was human. I released his corpse and it fell back on the sand, though the eyes still seemed to be staring at me. It was almost like they were leering at me, taunting me, even in their owners' death. I stood up and walked out of the cage, tears flowing freely down my cheeks. How had this happened? Why was the world falling apart? How could Chris have hidden this from us? Manipulated us, knowing who we were and who he was?

Leo was holding Piper in his arms, supporting her gently. I wiped my eyes, when I realized that my hands were covered in Pyro's blood. I shook them out at my sides, suppressing a shudder as droplets flew off my hands.

"What's wrong with Piper? Why'd she faint?" I asked, trying to sniff back my tears.

"Her mind...she couldn't handle the stress and her mind shut down." said Leo. He saw the anxiety on my face, and quickly amended his answer. "She'll be fine, she'll just have to sleep for a while."

Paige, who had left the cave during the time we found out about Chris, was brought in by Freya. "I explained everything." said Freya. Paige looked like she was in a state of shock.

"Why – why don't I bring Piper home?" she said, avoiding the topic of Chris, and looking none of us in the eye.

"No," said Leo, his eyes misty, "I'll do it." And with that said, he orbed out.

Tears streaming down my face, and Paige's face, we embraced, and tried to figure out when everything had gone wrong.

Chris's POV

I reformed in Sanctuary, the place Rogue, Logan, and I had hidden before. I crouched on the floor and grasped my head, my fingers twining through my hair. I felt a pain in my heart, a pain _of_ my heart. How could this have happened? How could all of my plans have been ruined like this? What the hell was I supposed to do now? To see the look on Piper's face... I got up angrily with a yell and kicked over one of the chairs, using all of my willpower to keep the tears from spilling down my face. How had it come to this? _How had this happened?_

I felt Logan pushing in my mind, trying to get through my mental wall of rage and grief. Rogue and Logan! I had to get back to the manor quickly, before Leo or Paige orbed there. I didn't know where, but I knew I had to get away! I couldn't face any of them now...now that they knew who I was. They must hate me now. I could hardly blame them, after all I'd done...but I couldn't think about this! I had to get back to the manor. I orbed out.

When I reformed in the manor, I saw Logan standing in tensely in front of me. Rogue was still lying on the sofa, and she sat up when she saw me. Logan, unable to breach my mental barriers, opened his mouth to speak, but I interrupted him.

"Logan, we don't have time." I said, and was horrified to find that my voice was thick with emotion. "We have to go now."

I felt Rogue pressing against the barriers in my mind, and try to find a way around them. I wish I could have let her inside, but I couldn't control the barriers; they were too tied to my emotions. I felt Logan also pressing against my barriers, but not as hard as I thought he would have. I was grateful for that; I didn't know if I could have handled it if he and Rogue had both been attacking my barriers with full force...not with everything else going on.

Logan helped Rogue to her feet; I could sense that she was still woozy from the Woogy's possession. It was then that I saw the beginning of sparkling orbs. I quickly put a hand on both Rogue's and Logan's shoulder and orbed away just as the other set of orbs materialized into the forms of Leo and Piper. I saw the shocked looks on Leo's face – I refused to think of him as father -- as Logan, Rogue, and I orbed away.

We reformed quickly in Sanctuary, and as I took my hands away from Logan and Rogue, I made up a quick spell. I knew that I would have to block the Power of Three -- I couldn't think of them as my family -- and whitelighters. Once I had set up that protection, I would have to get memory dust from a whitelighter, or a forgetfulness potion.

"_**Blood to Blood I shield this place**_

_**Let no Halliwell enter this space**_

_**Let only me orb through these walls**_

_**Bar whitelighters from walking these halls."**_

The Sanctuary quickly glowed a protective teal, before it reverted back to its original color. I turned to Rogue and Logan, and I felt the desire to _get away_. If I didn't leave soon, I knew I would start to cry, and I didn't want to do that in front of them.

"They found out who I am," I said, "They know who I am."

"What should we do?" asked Logan, looking at me with concern.

"Is there a way to fix this?" said Rogue, "Time travel or something?"

I felt overwhelmed by the sympathy and desire to help I could sense from Rogue and Logan. I felt so lost and confused. My plans, which had seemed so simple as I came back to this time, were scattered. Nothing was like I'd imagined it would be...everything was wrong. I felt like I had to keep moving; to just go _away_. I thought back to Kujat, the Hag I'd been researching before as a possible new contact. Maybe she had a potion that could help me; she was a Hag, and Hag's were usually on the shady side of magic. She _had_ to have something I could use!

"I'm going to see a Hag," I said. I turned to Rogue. "I'm going to lend you my power, just in case they find a way in here. If they come, orb away with Logan. You should be able to sense me and orb to my side. Don't let them follow you."

I walked to Rogue and touched her head. In my head I counted the seconds...one...two...three. I felt my energy leaving me now, and I took my hand off Rogue's head. I felt some of my energy return, though I felt a little woozy. I should have let go sooner. It seemed like the speed in which Rogue drained energy and power was increasing.

"Be careful," she said, as she took a step back, giving me room to orb.

"Wait," said Logan. "I know you're going through hell right now, but you have to find a way to lower your barriers. Otherwise, we won't know when something happens. You might need us."

I felt a stab of guilt, anger, and remorse. I didn't want to need anyone, even Rogue and Logan. I just wanted to get away from everyone, and I felt more bare and vulnerable then I had in a long time. I didn't like that Rogue and Logan knew this about me; I had been beginning to really rely on them, but I didn't want them to think I would break down. I didn't want them to think badly of me, which was an emotion I hadn't felt in a long time. But I also didn't want to hurt them, and I knew that my feelings –which they felt through our mental connections-- _were_ hurting them. I knew I would have to calm down for my barriers to recede, but I was far too torn up inside to be calm.

I saw Rogue flinch as she sensed my ravaged emotions, even though she wasn't touching my mind at the moment. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself, and gave Logan a single nod.

"I'm come back soon," I said, orbing out.

When I reformed, I was in a cavern in the Underworld. The cavern walls were lined with rickety wooden bookcases, which head dusty tomes. There was a large cauldron simmering over a fire, and a purple smoke was rising from the cauldron, along with a smell like burnt cabbage.

Behind a dirty counter stood Kujat the Hag. She was old with grey-green skin, silver hair, and several prominent warts on her wrinkled face, though her eyes were cold and calculating.

"Whitelighter?" she said aloud in a voice that croaked, "What's a whitelighter seeking me for? Vengeance? Aid? What could he want, I wonder."

She spoke as if she were talking to herself, though she was speaking loudly. I took a deep breath, and tried to focus on the here and now. I counted quickly to ten and exhaled, trying to appear cool and in control. I walked up to the counter, and stopped two paces away.

"I want," I said, pleased to hear that my voice was steady and strong. "You to supply me a special potion. I need a potion that can erase a memory, but only one, and the one I choose."

Kujat laughed, though she never took her eyes off me. "Whitelighter is perhaps not so worthy of his status?" she said, again seeming to talk to herself. "Betraying his witch. More suited to Evil then Good, it seems."

"Do you have the potion or not?" I snarled, taking a threatening step towards the Hag.

The Hag stopped laughing and glared at me. "There is no potion that specific that I have," she said. "Potions to take away memories, to confuse the mind, to give visions to another, those I have. The type you seek is too specific to be made by a Hag. A wizard, I would seek if I were you."

I clenched my teeth in frustration. This was a powerful Hag, one of the most powerful. Wizards were harder to get a hold of; they were nearly extinct. I knew Kujat had the potential to make or know of such a potion. At the very least, she should have an empath-blocking potion, which I would need too.

I took a breath. "Do you have an empath-blocking potion?"

Kujat chuckled. "No potions for such a whitelighter."

I shook my head. If Kujat didn't have or wouldn't give me the potions I needed, I need to vanquish her, and quickly. From the way she acted, I would be unable to use her. If she didn't aid me in giving me potions, she would refuse to give me information. I knew as I looked into her cold eyes, I would not be able to threaten or intimidate her. The only reason she hadn't tried to kill me yet was probably because I interested her, and hadn't attacked her. That would change. She may have been strong, but I was sure that I was stronger. And I knew that I couldn't leave her alive to tell others of me; others who might have the power to kill me.

Suddenly, the Hag gasped, and her eyes glazed over. I realized she was getting a premonition; Kujat could see into the future. Her eyes turned back to their normal color, and she glared at me. From behind her counter, she drew a darklighter crossbow and fired at me.

Instinctively, I orbed out, reforming behind the Hag. She had seen her vanquish, and had attempted to prevent it by killing me. There was no way I was going to allow that.

Telekinetically, I moved the bow out of her hands and onto the cavern floor. The Hag swirled around, pulling an athame out of the sleeve of her robes. She lunged at me, and I orbed next to the crossbow on the floor. I picked up the bow, as the Hag prepared to shimmer out, and I shot her. The arrow embedded itself in her shoulder, and her shimmering stopped. She dropped her athame and clutched at her shoulder, attempting to pull out the arrow, though it was embedded too deep to be pulled out. I used my telekinesis to direct the athame she had dropped into the Hag's throat. She froze, and for a moment, her eyes reflected the pain that comes when you know your death has arrived. Then she exploded, her body devoured by flames.

I did a quick 360 around the cavern, to make sure no other demons were about to shimmer in. When I was satisfied, I dropped the crossbow, and walked behind the counter the Hag had been behind. I looked at the shelves around the lair, searching the potion labels for anything I could use. I found an empath blocking potion, which I drunk immediately, and a lust potion. Those were the only things I could possibly use. Kujat hadn't been a complete liar, she had no memory potion. The lust potion I considered taking, glaring critically at the label, wondering if I should leave it or take it. I might be forced to use it; Piper wasn't pregnant with me yet, and she might not want to become pregnant, if she knew it would create me. With a sigh of frustration, I pocketed the lust potion.

It was strange, but vanquishing Kujat seemed to lift a weight off my shoulders. I guessed it must have been because of the emotional release I got when I vanquished a demon. I loathed demons, even though I understood their necessity. Either way, I was now calm enough to lower my mental barriers. I felt Rogue's and Logan's presence in my mind, and didn't flinch. I showed them my memories of the cavern.

"_Anything happen on your end?"_ I asked, still careful to keep my mental turmoil under control.

"_No, nothing,"_ said Logan.

"_Do you have a plan?"_ asked Rogue. _"What do we do next?"_

"_I don't know," _I said with a sigh I ran my hand through my hair, as though I could comb the stress out of it._ "I really don't know. I think I'll find a wizard to get me a memory-erasing potion."_

I got ready to orb, when I felt light suddenly. I saw swirling white lights around me and realized that someone was calling me with a summoning spell. I tried to orb out, but the spell enveloped me, and I was unable to escape it. I was whisked out of the cavern, and transported to the manor -it was the only place where anyone would have wanted to summon me-. I felt my panic rise as the lights faded, and I stood in front of Phoebe and Paige, whose red, puffy eyes bored into me.

We stared at each other for one long moment, each assessing the other. I wondered if I should say anything... if I _could_ say anything. I couldn't. Phoebe and Paige began to angrily walk towards me; Phoebe raised her fist, and I orbed away. I reformed in Sanctuary, where I would be temporarily safe from my family. I turned to Rogue and Logan, and filled them in on what had happened in our minds.

I needed another plan...

"Rogue, Logan," I said, pleased to hear that my voice was returning close to normal. "There's something I need you to do." And I opened my mind fully to them now, showing them my plan.

Logan nodded. "We'll do it."

Piper's POV

I woke up, and was aware suddenly that I was in someones arms. I opened my eyes and looked up, seeing Leo's concerned face gazing into mine. It was then that I was assaulted with the memories of what had just occurred. My eyes teared up, and Leo held me closer.

"Piper, are you alright?" he asked, his own voice brittle with unshed tears. I started to cry, turning to hold Leo closer to me, so that I was crying into his shirt.

"How could we not have known?" I asked, hoping that Leo would know. "How could _I_ not have known?" I cried harder now. "Aren't m-mothers supposed to have an instinct for this? Aren't we supposed to be able to _tell_?! He's our s-son Leo, and I didn't even know it!"

"Piper, that is _not_ your fault!" Leo insisted in a kind, but firm voice. I didn't believe him. I shook my head into his shirt. "None of us knew. Chris made sure we didn't know; he covered all his tracks. If there was anything, we would have found it. He didn't want us to know who he was."

"I still s-should have known," I cried. "Pyro left hints, always making those cryptic remarks. It's why Chris was so scared of him, he didn't w-want him to tell us. I should have known! I'm a h-horrible mother."

"No, Piper!" said Leo firmly, lifting my head so that I was looking into his eyes. "You are _not_ a bad mother!" I gave a mirthless laugh which sounded on the edge of hysteria, even to me. Leo continued. "We can do this, we can work this out. All we have to do is find Chris and talk to him. We have to show him that we'll accept him as our son. We _can_ fix this." Leo's voice cracked on the word 'son', but other than that, he sounded calm.

"Can we?" I asked. For two simple words, they carried a lot of weight. What would happen if we couldn't make things right with Chris? What if we couldn't even find him? What if he fled back into his own time?"

It was then that Paige walked into the room, carrying two cups, and a pitcher of iced tea. Her eyes looked slightly red, and she walked slowly, as if not completely sure whether she was dreaming or not.

"Leo, can you please go to Phoebe? We tried to summon Chris, but it didn't work, and now she's making a potion that'll bring her to the Underworld. She's not thinking straight right now. She won't listen to me, she's in the kitchen, making a potion right now. Can you talk to her?"

Leo held my hand and looked at me, before turning to Paige. "I don't think..." he began, but I cut him off, wiping the tears off my face.

"No, Leo." I said, letting go of his hand. I sniffed in and took in a shuddery breath, determined not to cry anymore. "You should go to Phoebe. It's too dangerous in the Underworld without the Power of Three. You need to help her."

"But Piper," Leo began again, looking at me.

"I'll be okay, Leo." I said, praying that it was true. Besides, Paige looked like she wasn't dealing with the situation very well. She needed help too; just as much as Phoebe did.

Leo gave me a look of concern, but left, walking into the corridor that would lead to kitchen. Paige sat down next to me on the sofa. "Iced tea?" she asked, a weary sort of look on her face. "I brought enough for two."

I nodded. "Thank you." I said, as she poured the tea into two cups. "Are you doing okay?" I asked, as I held the tea in my hands. Its coolness was comforting.

Paige gave a mirthless laugh. "Probably better than you." she said, then a look of concern appeared on her face. "How are you holding up?" she asked gently, putting her cup, untouched, on the table.

"Not so good," I said. Boy, was that an understatement. Paige nodded, expressing that she felt the same way. I lifted the iced tea to my lips, and an unusual smell entered my nostrils. "I still just can't believe..." I changed the topic, "What type of tea is this?" I asked, trying to focus on something other than the situation at hand. "Berry?"

"Mixed blackberry and mango." said Paige, also glad to be distracted. "Try it; I think you'll like it."

I took a sip, and immediately realized that this iced tea was _not_ blackberry and mango, and was not the flavor of anything I'd ever tasted before. I looked at Paige, who's face was sad, her eyes bright with unshed tears. Comprehension hit me like a lightning bolt: Paige had given me a potion in the iced tea.

Paige's body was covered in orbs for a moment, and then shifted. Chris was looking at me now; he had disguised himself as Paige. "I'm so sorry." he said, his voice steady. He looked at me with over-bright eyes, and orbed out before I could say or do anything. What had he done to me? What was in the potion?

I got up and ran to the kitchen. "Phoebe? Leo?" I called. I entered the kitchen just in time to see Leo drink a cup of iced tea. "Leo, no!" I called, running to him. Phoebe backed away, and she orbed out. There was a moment when I was frozen with shock; Phoebe didn't have the power to orb. Before I could give the matter any more thought or concern, I felt a desire in me that wiped all thoughts from my mind. I kissed Leo, and he kissed back. The world shrunk until we were the only ones inside it, joined in our love.

Chris's POV

I orbed back to Sanctuary, and Rogue orbed next to me a few seconds later, still disguised as Phoebe. She shifted her features back to her own, and turned to greet Logan, who had just come up.

"You did good," he said, giving Rogue a hug, careful not to touch her bare skin. Rogue and I had kept our minds open so that Rogue, Logan, and I shared minds while Rogue and I had given Piper and Leo the potion. Logan knew everything that we'd done.

"How are they?" I asked, gesturing deeper into Sanctuary.

"Loud." said Logan shortly, "They haven't shut up this entire time."

We walked together into the back area of Sanctuary where a crystal cage was set up. The true Phoebe and Paige were inside it. We'd reversed the summoning spell they'd used on me and trapped them. Then, I lent Rogue my power and we glamored into them. We gave Piper and Leo the lust potion I'd taken from Kujat in the iced tea. It should have taken effect by now. All that was left to do was to erase Paige and Phoebe's memories with the potion Logan and I had taken from an alchemist. I'd mixed in some of the memory potion with the lust potion, so Piper and Leo should forget about me being their son, too.

"Let us out of here already!" yelled Phoebe.

"You can't keep us here!" called Paige, as Rogue, Logan, and I came into their line of sight. "We're your family!"

"I'm sorry," I said as I took out the memory potions. "But it's better this way." Before Phoebe or Paige could say or do anything else, I used my telekinesis to move a crystal out of the circle. The cage collapsed, and I threw the potions at Phoebe and Paige.

Both of them collapsed on the mats Logan had put inside the cage. I stepped over to them, and put one hand on each.

"They won't remember any of this?" asked Rogue, making sure.

"Maybe as deja-vu," I said, "But they shouldn't. The potion should erase everything from when Pyro told them who I was up until now. Unless they know what they're trying to remember, the memories will remain hidden."

I orbed Phoebe and Paige back into the manor and put them in their respective rooms and beds. There was no need for them to be uncomfortable. I looked long and hard at each of their faces, trying to memorize their features while they were so peacefully asleep. I tucked them into their beds, and I allowed myself to smile before I orbed back to Sanctuary.

Phoebe's POV

I turned in my bed, my eyes still closed, pulling the covers closer. I felt heat on the outside of my eyes, and realized I should probably get out of bed. Opening my eyes, I stood up, rubbing grit out of the corners of my eyes. It was a very bright morning, and I pulled my curtains shut. It was then that I realized I was still dressed in my clothes from the day before. Why hadn't I changed? I struggled to remember why, but I couldn't, almost like a dream. Then I remembered; Piper, Paige and I had vanquished Pyro in the Underworld and had orbed home. Exhausted, I had fallen into bed without changing after telling Chris about the successful vanquish. Now, I decided to change clothes, and then to go down to the kitchen and make coffee.

When I entered the kitchen, I saw Paige already making coffee. "Hey, could you make some for me too?" I asked, and Paige nodded.

I sat down at the table, and Piper came in a few moments later, in a blue bathrobe, with Leo right behind her in a bathrobe of his own. Paige and I caught each others gaze. She smiled, and I raised an eyebrow.

"You both want some coffee?" asked Paige, holding the pot under the tap on the sink.

"Yeah, coffee would be great" said Piper with a yawn.

"Leo?" asked Paige, "Coffee?"

"No, but thanks," said Leo, and he and Piper kissed. Paige and I gave each other a look. After a few more minutes, Piper got up.

"I'm going to make some eggs. Anyone else want?" she asked, looking at us.

After everyone was sitting down at the table with their eggs and coffee, with the exception of Leo who had toast, Chris orbed in.

"Chris, we are not demon hunting now!" said Paige before Chris could say anything. "We're having breakfast; save your demon until later."

"Good morning to you too," said Chris sarcastically. "And I wasn't going to ask you to hunt demons. You did a hell of a good job just by vanquishing Pyro. You deserve a bit of a break."

"Wow, are you sick or something?" I asked. "You always want to demon hunt."

Chris shook his head. "I can find some for you, if you want."

"No!" said Piper, Paige and I together.

Chris smiled. For a moment, an image flashed in my head; an image of Chris crying in Valhalla, but it vanished as quickly as it had come. I returned my attention to my eggs, as Chris orbed out. The image was already out of my mind.

Chris's POV

As I reformed in Sanctuary, I showed Rogue and Logan what had just occurred. Logan gave a small smile in relief, and Rogue sighed, as if expelling a heavy weight from her lungs.

"So they don't remember?" she asked, making sure.

"Yeah. To them, it never happened. And now I'm already forming in Piper's womb." I said, and allowed myself a smile of relief. "We should go back to P3. They'll get suspicious if we're not there."

I took Rogue's gloved hand in my left, and Logan's hand in my right. We orbed back to P3, like we had never left. As far as the sisters were concerned, we never had.

**A/N: So, yeah. That's the end of the chappie. I have no idea when I'll update next, but I'll try to do it soon. Now, do me a favor, and press the little purple button to your left. You know you wanna...**


	20. The Strange Demon

**Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or X-Men. I own nothing. **

**I'm so sorry for not posting in a while. I'm not gonna waste your time with excuses. For those of you still here, I hope you read and enjoy the chapter. Any reviews would be welcome. **

Piper's POV

"Phoebe, say it now!" I yelled, as I ran across the kitchen, narrowly avoiding sliding into the counter.

I dived to the ground as a winged demon with red skin threw an energy ball at me, narrowly missing my head, but incinerating the blender. The raspberry smoothie which I had been making sprayed on the walls and floor behind me, and I felt bits of smoothie land in my hair. I scrambled up and flicked my hands in the demon's direction. The demon flew into the air, and my power caused it's ankle to explode. The demon screamed in anger and pain, and flew towards me as Phoebe entered the kitchen, chanting in a frantic voice and holding a blue jewelry box in her hand.

"**Demon of the darkest night, **

**I banish you from sound and sight,**

**May your wings be forever clipped,**

**Your soul contained in a magic crypt!"**

The demon screamed again, and reached with it's black-clawed hands, as if hoping to slash me in half with it's claws. Then, as if the demon was turned to smoke, it's body stretched out and slid into the open box in Phoebe's hand. The blue lid snapped shut and the box glowed, sealing the demon inside forever.

"Was that the only one left?" asked Phoebe, looking around cautiously.

"Yes," I said, "I blew up the others."

At that moment, Chris orbed in with Logan, and Rogue orbed in a second later, all of them tense. Chris's darting eyes quickly surveyed the smoothie in my hair, the damage to the kitchen, and the blue box in Phoebe's hand.

"Why didn't you call us when the demons attacked?" Chris demanded, crossing his arms. "I sensed that you were in danger. You know, you could have been killed?"

"What kind of demon was it, anyway?" asked Logan, who unclenched his fists. He probably been ready to use them in the fight he thought he was being orbed to.

"They're called Inumi demons," said Paige, who had just walked into the room. "And they did not attack us, we summoned them."

"Why did you summon them if they didn't attack you?" asked Rogue, "The demons didn't deserve to be vanquished if they didn't attack anyone."

"I had a premonition that they were going to drink the blood of a high school kid," said Phoebe, as she walked over to the counter and began to throw out the scattered bits of the blender that remained. I went over to help her. "I found a vanquishing spell and a box that you could put their souls in." continued Phoebe. "We summoned them – they were a clan – and vanquished them."

"Did you need to vanquish them using the box?" asked Chris, covering loose ends.

"No," I said, "I blew up two, and Paige impaled..." I turned to Paige. "How many did you impale?"

"Impaled one, and sent two flying into each other." said Paige. "I used the box to get the three I got, and one of the ones you got before giving it to Phoebe."

"I used it on one in the basement, and the one in the kitchen." said Phoebe, turning to Chris.

"But that means you missed one of the demons," said Logan, "You didn't trap it in the box."

"Yeah," I said, turning around, "But it didn't reform, it didn't come back. I blew it up. It's dead; trapped in the Wasteland or somewhere else. Don't worry about it." I took a napkin and started wiping smoothie off my hair, and the rest of the kitchen.

"Are Inumi demons in the Book?" asked Chris, looking thoughtful for a moment.

"Yeah, that's how we got the spell to summon them." I said, "Don't worry about them, Chris. They're gone. All of them."

"Sure, ok." said Chris. I raised my eyebrows. Was Chris really going to give in that easily? "We'll find some more demons for you, then." he said, looking thoughtful. And before Paige, Phoebe or I could protest, Chris had seized Logan's hand, and they and Rogue had orbed out.

Chris's POV

I reformed with Logan in the attic. Rogue, following our orb trail, reformed a second behind us. I let go of Logan's hand and walked quickly over to the Book of Shadows. I started flicking through pages anxiously.

"_Looking for the demon?"_ asked Rogue mentally. When she felt my mental nod, she continued. _"But why? Are they important to the Future?"_

"_Or just dangerous?"_ asked Logan.

"_I've seen Inumi demons before, but never could vanquish one."_ I said, looking for the Inumi page in the Book. _"They always came back; not quickly, and not obviously, but they always came back. If that one Inumi demon wasn't trapped inside the box, there's a possibility it could attack again."_

"_What's so special about that box?" _asked Logan. _"It looked normal."_

"_Four years ago, Piper, Phoebe, and Prue fought against a warlock named Matthew Tate." _I said, recounting a story of my family's past._ "He had betrayed our ancestor, Melinda Warren, who was the first of the Halliwell line. She sealed him inside a locket after he betrayed her; a locket that could only be opened by her descendants. This box is the same. It was made long ago, I'm not sure how long, but I am sure that only a Halliwell can open it." _

"_How do you know that?" _asked Logan.

"_Because Wyatt used these demons in the Future."_ I said with a mental shrug. _"They're a very strong breed of demon. They were thought to be extinct; killed by a clan of witches whose descendants became the Phoenix clan. That's why the Phoenix's can regenerate when killed by magic. They originally stole the power from the Inumi demons they wiped out. Phoenix's and the Halliwell ancestors used to be __allies."_

I reached the Inumi page, and read it to myself, as Rogue and Logan read it over my shoulder. On the page was a picture of an Inumi; it was red skinned with large bat-like wings, light blue eyes that were almost white, black claws and fangs, and long black hair that seemed itself to be made of darkness.

_"Inumi were the first demons that were seen by humans, and they inspired much fear and chaos. Bloodthirsty, the Inumi seek to devour human flesh for sustenance. These demons are highly intelligent, merciless, and ruthless. However, they will honor promises they make, as these demons were cursed long ago to be able to speak only the truth. Though they will be held to their oaths, you must be sure that any agreement you make with these demons, should you wish to, is not open to interpretation, as they will use this to betray you. These demons, however, will not make agreements unless the odds are highly stacked against them. The Inumi Queen, does however, have an alliance with the Vampire Queen._

_ Their attacks and skills include energy balls, using their teeth and claws, skill of flight, telepathy (though only with another of their species), flaming (as a mode of teleportation), and the ability to track magical beings by the smell of their blood. Inumi hunt always in pairs, and unlike most demons, mate for life. There are thought to be only 136 Inumi in existence. To successfully vanquish an Inumi, you must seal it inside the Box of Lewiya; otherwise, the demon will simply reform and attack."_

Below this was a spell that would trap Inumi in the Box of Lewiya. Phoebe, Piper – it was so hard not to think of her as mom-, and Paige must have used it to seal the Inumi in the box... but they had not sealed all the Inumi. One had escaped, which meant it would reform again, and attack again. Crap.

I closed the Book and put it quickly back on it's shelf, not bothering to read the rest on the page about Inumi, before sprinting down the steps, with Rogue and Logan hot on my heels. I gave them my thoughts as we ran, and I heard Logan swear softly behind me. I was subtly aware in my mind that Logan had clenched his fists and was preparing to extend his claws. We skidded to a halt in the kitchen, where Piper, Phoebe, and Paige were still cleaning up.

"Chris? Rogue? Logan?" asked Piper, as she got up and put a dirty paper towel in the garbage. "Is something wrong?"

"The Inumi," I said quickly. "They mate for life--"

"What, like swans?" Phoebe interrupted, looking at me curiously.

"Yes," said Rogue impatiently, "And you didn't get one inside the box--"

"Which means it's still alive, and it wants revenge--" said Logan, looking from Phoebe to Paige to Piper.

"And it could attack at any minute." I said, and only the gravity of the situation at hand suppressed my grin of pleasure at the way Logan, Rogue, and I spoke together.

Paige, Phoebe and Piper looked to each other, and as one, stopped cleaning and stood up. Phoebe took a sheet of paper out of her pocket and unfolded it. She glanced at the sheet, and then at me. There was an awkward moment of long silence where nothing happened. No Inumi demon entered the room, screaming for revenge. Absolutely nothing happened. Phoebe let out a sigh and rolled her eyes slightly.

"Chris, are you sure this thing's coming back?" she asked, giving me a look that clearly hoped I was about to say 'no'.

"It's gonna come." I said calmly, carefully looking around the room, in apprehension of an attack. "It's going to want to avenge it's mate."

Piper looked around the room, and there was silence for another moment. Then she gave me a look that clearly said she was going to discount what Logan, Rogue, and I had said.

"Look, guys," she began, turning to Phoebe and Paige. "I blasted that demon. Maybe I stopped it's regeneration --"

Piper stopped as the Inumi demon promptly flamed in. It's pale eyes blazed as it let out a piercing scream. At once, Logan had unsheathed his claws and had lunged at the demon, letting out a primal adrenaline-raising scream to match the demon's own. The Inumi flew head on and had grabbed Logan's right shoulder and left elbow to fast for me to realize how it had moved at all. It bit into Logan's left collarbone, and blood spurted out of the wound. I felt the pain in my mind, and frantically looked quickly around the room for something to use. I sent a set of Pipers chef knives – I knew she would kill me for that later – telekinetically into the Inumi's back and neck. The demon screamed and flung Logan away after tearing away a lump of his flesh. Logan broke through the basement door and I heard him land on the concrete floor, not even tumbling down the steps.

"_Logan!" _Rogue and I both screamed in our minds.

"_I'm okay,"_ he growled, though his mental voice sounded strained, and I felt his pain shoot through my skull in a sharp spike. _"I'll heal. Just give me a minute. I'm gonna kill that bastard!"_

Turning my attention back to the demon, I saw it swallow a lump of bloody flesh – which I knew was Logan's – and smile.

"Delicioussss," the Inumi hissed, smiling a very bloody grin. It didn't even seem to notice the knives embedded in it's flesh anymore. It licked its lips.

Piper flexed her hands and one of the Inumi's wings was blasted off. The demon screamed, but then laughed.

"Foolssss," the demon hissed, and then flamed out.

Piper, Phoebe, Paige, Rogue, and I all looked around the room. I resisted the urge to go down to the basement and make sure Logan was okay, but I knew the demon wouldn't just leave. It had to come back.

"_Rogue,"_ I said in my mind, and held out my hand.

Rogue understood; I wanted her to temporarily borrow my powers. She held my hand up to her face for a second and put it down. I felt her mental affirmation that she had received my powers. I turned to Phoebe.

"How does that spell go, again?" I asked, pointedly raising my eyebrows. Phoebe got the point and unfolded the paper. Maybe the demon didn't have to be in the room for the spell to work.

"**Demon of the darkest – "** Phoebe began, but was cut off as the Inumi flamed once ore into the room. It flew at Phoebe and, with one hand, grabbed her by one arm, and with the other, grabbed Piper who was next to her. Hauling them forward with superhuman strength, the Inumi flung them through the kitchen door into the dining room. I heard the table collapse and glass shattering, along with the yells of Phoebe and Piper. I resisted the urge to run to their sides, to _make sure_ they were safe, and whole, and alive. But I knew I had to focus on the Inumi. I had to vanquish it.

Paige flung out her hand. "Steak knife set!" she yelled, following my lead.

Piper's set of stainless-steel, made-in-Japan steak knife set flew into the Inumi's chest. All the knives connected, and the Inumi screamed again, twisting in the air, as it started to pull out the knives. Apparently, it's chest was vulnerable in some way where its neck and back were not.

I started to frantically fling any sharp object I laid eyes on towards the Inumi's chest. Paige ran across the kitchen into the dining room, yelling for Phoebe and Piper, who were not responding. I felt an idea spark in Rogue's mind, and she orbed out.

"_Rogue?"_ I asked, and then I understood. _"No, Rogue! It'll kill you!"_

Rogue didn't answer, and reformed right on top of the Inumi. She locked her arms around it's neck, while telekinetically flinging off her gloves using my powers. The Inumi seemed to realize what was happening to it almost immediately. It held out one of it's hands behind its back and created an energy ball, which it released right above Rogue's back. She orbed out before the energy ball hit her, and it struck the Inumi demon in its own back. Rogue reformed next to me, and we both continued to send sharp things into the flesh of the Inumi. Maybe it was because the Inumi's skin was red, but in my rising panic, I noticed that it wasn't bleeding at all.

It was then I noticed that Logan had climbed up the basement stairs, his shoulder now completely healed. Unsheathing his claws, Logan jumped towards th Inumi, which had began to fly towards Rogue and me. Catching the demon's long black hair with one hand, Logan pulled the demon's neck back and stabbed it in the neck with his fist of claws. The Inumi was frozen for a second, perhaps in shock, and it's pale eyes widened. No blood flowed down it's neck, but something Logan had done seemed to have hurt the demon.

"That's for taking a chunk outta my shoulder," growled Logan, as the demon fell to the floor. Logan still didn't remove his claws.

Paige came running back into the kitchen, holding a sheet of paper. Even while Rogue and I launched more sharp objects into the Inumi's chest, I noticed, to my horror, that Paige's hands were covered in blood. She began to chant the spell again.

"**Demon of the darkest night**

**I banish you from sound and -"**

But the Inumi's eyes, which had glazed over when Logan stabbed it, flared to life once more. Before Paige could finish the spell, it erupted in flames and teleported away. Logan dropped to the floor – he had been on top of the demon – and I noticed that his hands had been burned. His hand quickly scabbed, and within seconds, the scabs fell of his hands and onto the floor. I walked over to Logan and helped him to his feet. I looked at the spot between his shoulder and neck where the Inumi had bitten off his flesh. It seemed to be completely healed and regrown, though there was a lot of blood all over his shirt and Jacket. I quickly cast my mind around his, looking for any remaining injuries. Logan gently, but firmly, pushed my mental probe out of the deeper reaches of his mind.

"_Chris, I'm fine."_ he thought, giving me a smug mental smile. _"I can take care of myself."_

"_Why didn't you get transported when the Inumi flamed out?" _asked Rogue, once she had also checked Logan over, and carefully hugged him.

I noticed that Rogue had put her gloves back on. Even still, she was careful to make sure that neither her skin nor hair touched Logan. Satisfied that both of my friends, I turned to look at Paige. But she was no longer there. She was calling for Leo. Oh, god. Mom and Phoebe! I ran from the kitchen and nearly ran into Paige. I ran round her and crouched next to Piper – she's wasn't mom. Not yet – and saw that bits of glass were embedded in her face and chest. I glanced at Phoebe, and saw that she was in slightly better condition; glass was only covering her face. Both of them were out cold, and I saw with rising panic, that Piper's breathing was becoming more shallow as blood poured out of her neck. I felt a sense of deja vu, stemming from the time Rogue had absorbed the Woogy. I stretched out my hands, hoping that be sheer force of will, they would emit the Healing glow that I'd seen so many others use. Nothing happened.

Sensing my panic, Rogue and Logan ran into the room, as Paige called again for Leo.

"_Chris, what's wrong?"_ asked Logan, as he surveyed our surroundings. I sensed that his hands were in fists, and Logan had been prepared to fight. I sensed his fists unclench and relax when he realized there was no danger. At least, not the type you could fight. Because once again, Piper - my soon-to-be mother - was in danger.

Leo finally orbed in, looking around the room in confusion. When he caught sight of Piper's prone form, he fell to the floor opposite me at once, and extended his hands. The Healing light came from his hands, and I heaved a sigh of relief as Piper's cuts vanished. Leo didn't need me to take out the glass this time; the glass simply fell off her skin. It must not have embedded deeply into her flesh. The wound on her neck had Healed first, and now the minor cuts were disappearing. I exhaled slowly, a controlled sigh of relief. The danger was over. As soon as Piper was Healed, Leo would Heal Phoebe, and everyone would be fine.

Piper suddenly gasped, and opened her eyes. She looked up into Leo's face, and then my own, looking momentarily confused. She brushed the shards of glass off her shirt and face onto the floor. Leo turned to Heal Phoebe, satisfied that Piper was alright. I helped Piper sit up - it was easier to think of her as Piper now that I knew she was safe - as I pulled a small piece out of her hair that had fallen there. I threw the piece on the floor. Piper looked at me with confused eyes for a moment.

"Piper, what's wrong?" I asked, growing nervous as she stared piercingly into my eyes, as though trying to solve a puzzle.

"Nothing," she said quickly, breaking eye contact. "I just have this weird feeling of deja vu."

Rogue's, Logan's, and my mind went into "warning" mode all at once. If Piper remembered where her sense of deja vu came from... if she knew it had been from when Rogue had been possessed by the Woogy... if she remembered that, she might remember everything else, too. Luckily, she caught sight of Phoebe, and of Leo Healing her, which distracted her.

"Phoebe!" she exclaimed, standing up and walking over to Paige's side. She brushed her hair out of her face with her hands.

I stood up too, and walked to stand next to Logan and Rogue. I knew that Phoebe would be okay with Leo Healing her, and I wanted to give Piper, Phoebe, and Leo space. There was no sense in triggering a possible recurrence of memories. If that happened, then wiping their memories would have served no purpose at all.

_"Was wiping their memories the right thing?"_ Rogue suddenly asked. She's been following my train of thought. _"Piper doesn't even know she's pregnant with you yet."_

_"It was the right thing,"_ I answered, even though I was unsure of the answer myself. _"There was no other option."_

_"What'll we do when Piper starts to show?"_ asked Logan thoughtfully, not really expecting an answer. I had no real one to give, anyway.

_"It'll be months before that starts,"_ I said, hoping that I was right. We needed all the time we could get. _"And we'll deal with that when it happens."_

Logan gave a mental grin, and I could feel him shake his head in amusement, though physically, he did nothing.

Phoebe's eyes fluttered open, and Piper helped her stand up. Phoebe checked herself over, as Leo looked at both her and Piper.

"Are you both ok?" he asked. Logan, Rogue, and I could see the worry lined around his eyes. "Were you attacked?"

"We're fine," said Piper with a little smile as she rolled her eyes. "The demon just liked throwing people around.

"An Inumi demon attacked," said Logan, "Took a chunk out of my shoulder."

"Wait," said Phoebe, "Your shoulder! Leo, you have Heal his--" she looked at Logan in confusion as he pulled down the side of his t-shirt - what remained of the t-shirt, anyway - and showed her his whole and unblemished shoulder.

"I heal fast." he reminded her.

"Oh. Right." Phoebe chuckled slightly. She looked embarrassed by her mistake. "Sorry 'bout that." I felt like chuckling too, but I didn't want to embarrass her further.

"Wait," said Leo, looking from Logan to Piper, Phoebe, and Paige. "Did you say the _Inumi?_" We all nodded, and Leo's eyebrows disappeared into his hair. "Did you vanquish it?" he asked.

"No," Paige shook her head. "It flamed out just as I was reading the spell."

"You didn't vanquish it!" said Leo in disbelief.

"Don't worry, Leo, we'll get it next time." said Phoebe confidently, "I'll make copies of the spell, and when it flames in, we'll all say it."

"But you can only vanquish the Inumi with the Box of Lewiya," said Leo. "Otherwise the demons will just keep--"

"Reforming," I interrupted. "We know. This Inumi got blown up, reformed, and then attacked again."

"And it wasn't the only one who attacked," said Piper. "We summoned the Inumi demon clan --"

"You summoned the clan?" said Leo, his eyes widening in disbelief. He looked as though he was beginning to doubt our collective sanity.

"I had a premonition they were going to suck a kid's blood," explained Phoebe, "So we summoned them to stop them."

"And we did use the Box. All of them were sucked into it." said Paige, suddenly biting her lip. "All but one, anyway."

"But Inumi mate for life, and the survivor wanted to avenge the death of it's mate," said Rogue. She looked at Leo curiously. "Why do they do that?"

"Do what?" asked Leo.

"Mate for life," said Rogue, "Most demons don't. Demons are nearly incapable of love. So how can Inumi mate for life?"

I had told Rogue about Cole and Drake. The two demons - well, one was a half-demon - that my family had fallen in love with, and had been loved by in return. Most demons didn't love, but some of them did.

Leo ran his hand through his hair. "I don't know. We - the Elders - don't know much about the Inumi. They don't usually draw attention to themselves."

"Why don't you check with the Elders?" I asked him. "We need all the information we can get before the demon comes back."

Leo looked reluctantly at Piper; he clearly wanted to stay with her. Piper walked up to Leo and kissed him on the lips.

"Go," she said. "We'll be fine."

Leo gave Piper a nod, with eyes for her alone, before he orbed out. I quickly hid the small smile that threatened to bloom on my face as Leo orbed out. I was glad he'd Healed Phoebe and Piper, but at the same time, I was _very_ glad that he was gone for now.

_"You really hate that guy,"_ said Logan, _"That was a nice way to get rid of him; telling him to check with the Elders."_

_"Well, you never know, the Elders might actually know something."_ I said, my mental voice full of doubt, but satisfied nonetheless. _"I'm just glad Leo went away."_

_"But, based on your memories, we'd be lucky if the Elders knew what an Inumi looked like, let alone how to stop one without using the spell."_ said Rogue. _"The Elders never know anything really important." _

Piper sighed, bringing Logan, Rogue, and I out of our mental conversation. "Okay, Phoebe," she said, "You and Phoebe make copies of that spell. I'm gonna go cook up a potion."

"But potions don't work on the Inumi," said Paige.

"Potions may not vanquish them for good, but if it makes them go 'poof' for a while, it's good enough for me." said Piper, with a kind of determination that stemmed from the desire to best the challenge presented to her.

"What about us?" asked Rogue.

"You just make sure the demon doesn't come back." said Piper. "If it messes up any more of my house, the Wasteland will be the _least_ of it's concern."

Piper headed off towards the still-messy kitchen, while Phoebe and Paige moved to the living room. They sat on the sofa and began copying out the spells.

Suddenly I heard Piper yell, "Who threw around my chef knife set!?"

Paige and I glanced guiltily at each other, but neither of us said anything. Rogue quickly hid her own smile, but Logan smirked openly.

"Oh, I'm gonna _kill_ that demon!" I heard Piper growl.

_"Wasteland's got nothing on this demon now,"_ I said, smiling at memories of the Future. Memories from before things had gone bad. "No one, _messes with Piper's cooking gear. You should have seen her when a demon tried to use her gutting knife as an athame. She blew up his entire clan."_

_"The_ entire_ clan?" _clarified Logan.

I sent him, and Rogue, the relevant memories, and he snorted aloud with laughter. Phoebe glanced back at us, but then turned back to copying out the spell.

_"I still don't understand why the Inumi love each other,"_ said Rogue, bringing our conversation back to a previous subject. _"With the exception of Cole and Drake, no other demons have loved. And Cole was half-human, and Drake had been turned human. Maybe demons aren't as bad as everyone thinks they __are."_

I shook my head. _"No, Rogue. Cole and Drake were the rare exceptions. In the Future, I met only three other demons that were capable of love. Inumi didn't _really _love; at least not in the same way humans did."_

_"But an we really know that for sure?"_ asked Rogue._ "I mean, vampires love, and they're demons."_

_"But vampires were humans once, they carry their love with them when they transform."_ I pointed out. _"Why do you want the Inumi to be different?"_

Rogue gave a mental sigh. _"I just don't want to believe that all demons are bad. I don't want to condone entire species to death simply for existing. Demons, witches, and mutants are_ so_ similar. If one is wiped out, how long before the others are?"_

Logan stayed silent on the subject, probably because of diplomacy more than because of lack of interest. I could sense, and I knew that Rogue could sense, that he didn't care too much about hunting demons, unless they attacked first. Or unless they endangered a person. Logan was helping in the demon vanquishes, and he had helped fight Pyro. Logan vanquished demons when he had to, but I sensed that he, like me, didn't like to kill without cause.

Phoebe and Paige walked up to us, Phoebe holding little index cards. She handed each Logan, Rogue, and I an index card.

"This is the spell," said Phoebe, as Rogue, Logan and I read our cards simultaneously. "If the Inumi comes in, don't wait, just say the spell. With all of us saying it at once, at least one of us should be able to finish it, if the Inumi goes on the offensive."

"Don't you need to be holding the Box for the spell to work?" asked Logan.

"No," I answered aloud, "It doesn't matter who's holding the box, as long as the spell is said within range."

Logan nodded once. Paige peered around the corner of the dining room, checking on Piper's progress. She was nervous; she didn't want to interrupt Piper, especially since she had been partly responsible for throwing around Piper's knives. I felt the same way. Until Piper had vanquished the demon, cleaned her chef knives, and put the kitchen back in order, it would be a big mistake to cross her.

"Hey, Piper, how're those potions coming?" she asked.

There was a loud explosion in the kitchen, and Phoebe, Paige, Logan, Rogue, and I all went hurriedly inside. Piper was standing next to the stove, as thick white smoke came out of the simmering pot sitting on a burner. Another pot, next to it, promptly exploded, expelling red smoke. Piper blew the smoke out of her face and grinned. I had to cover my mouth to hide the chuckle that threatened to burst out. When Piper made potions... it was one of the best things in the world. Especially at the end, with all the different combination of multicolored smoke.

Piper moved her hair behind her ear and turned off the flames beneath the burners. "Perfect," she said, and I couldn't help a grin.

**A/N: So that's the end of the chappie. Next chappie is a confrontation with the Inumi, a conference with vampires, and Rogue finds out what love is among demons. Reviews are welcome. **


	21. Who is more Evil?

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. I hope you like the chapter.**

Vampire Queen's POV

I looked down from my throne, staring at the Inumi demon standing before me. She had come claiming parley, and I had no choice but to admit her, due to the agreement between our two species. She had evidently come from battle; a battle she lost. Her left wing was only now ending it's process of regrowth.

One of my heralds, a fairly new vampire by the name of Sasha, officially announced the Inumi. Summoning the members of my court, I gave my bats the signals to change their shapes. They did, and stood around me, in order of rank. Next to me stood my most valued advisor, Artemis. She compared being a vampire to being a goddess, and chose a new name soon after she'd been changed. She was also one of my better warriors, and was the lead Hunter. Artemis was an apt name for her.

"Tell us your case," I said to the Inumi. "Why have you requested to parley with us?"

"My clan was annihilated by the Charmed Ones," she said, her voice spitting out the name of the legendary witches like it was poison. "They possess the Box of Lewiya. They killed my mate. I am the only survivor, and I want revenge. I have been to the other clans, but they refuse to aid me, fearing their deaths. Now, I come to you for aid in my revenge."

I raised my eyebrow delicately. "And you would have us sacrifice ourselves? The last queen attempted to convert the Charmed Ones, and she fought them when that failed. She and our entire coven were vanquished. I will not through our lives away on a doomed attack."

"I know it would be suicide!" hissed the Inumi, "That is why my revenge does not take the shape of death. None has succeeded in killing the witches, and I will not add myself to the tally of the dead. But they attacked us when we did no harm to them. We did not hunt on their territory, and we did not attack them before."

"And how do you attempt to claim revenge without killing them?" asked Andrew, the head Tracker of my coven. He lead searches for likely meals, humans to convert, and threats to be eliminated.

"They were not the only ones who fought," said the Inumi, carefully making eye contact with Andrew. "They had a witchlighter, and two others, a male and a female. I sampled the male, but his flesh regrew. He tasted like nothing I'd ever had before, and he and the girl smelled like nothing I'd recognized. They are under the protection of the Charmed Ones. If we changed them, and they made their First Kill, they would be _ours_."

"That would do nothing," said Andrew, shaking his head. "Adding to our numbers would do nothing for us, and only bring the Charmed Ones down on us."

"Oh, it would do more than that." said the Inumi. "Do you not remember when Paige was turned? They refused to kill her properly. If we change one of their allies to Evil, the rest of your coven will be protected. They will refuse to kill one of their own, even knowing that allowing that person to remain alive would cause more death. Their hearts would be torn, and they would be unable to act. And if we could change the other two as well, they would be devastated."

"She does have some valid points," Artemis whispered in my ear, her green eyes still on the Inumi. "Witches fear and detest Evil, but can never kill those they know have been turned to it. It would hurt their hearts. It is a fitting revenge, indeed. Also, consider the powers we would gain."

I turned the idea over in my mind. Converting allies of the Charmed Ones would give my coven tremendous power, but I couldn't ignore the danger either. The last vampire Queen had been foolish, and I was determined not to repeat her mistakes. But, the Inumi had lost her clan, her kin, and her mate. If that had befallen me, would I not seek revenge as well? I looked at my court, and lastly at Artemis, and knew that I would. A revenge of this sort would hurt the Charmed Ones much worse than death.

"Very well," I told the Inumi. "We shall help you obtain your revenge. You have the word of the Vampire Queen."

The Inumi smiled, and we began discussing plans...

Rogue's POV

I was sitting on the kitchen counter, deep in thought. We were completely prepared if the Inumi came back. Piper, Phoebe, Paige, Chris, Logan and I each had a piece of paper with the spell that would suck the demon into the Box of Lewiya, and Phoebe was clutching the box in her hand. Piper had made an assortment of potions, and Paige had cleaned Piper's knives. Logan, Chris, and I had quickly memorized the spell, and Chris paced anxiously back and forth across the kitchen. Leo still had not returned from his conference with the Elders. But so far the demon had not returned, which had given me plenty of time to think, among other things, about love.

Love; the rarest and most powerful force in the world. Little more than an idea, love binds hundreds of people together. And with love, comes its opposite: hatred. You can't hate if you can't love, and humans could do both. Maybe demons too. They could certainly hate well enough, and despite what Chris had said, I was not convinced that humans were the only beings capable of love. The Inumi's behavior was one of the things that convinced me of this. All except for one, the entire Inumi clan had been vanquished. Wouldn't it have been smarter for the surviving demon to flee or hide? Seeing how its fellows had died, the Inumi would know it wasn't strong enough to kill the Charmed Ones. So why would it attack? I was sure it was because its clan was more than a clan; it must have been a family. Why else would the demon seek revenge? And if the demon did have a family, it must have loved them too. It _must_ have wanted to avenge their deaths. Right?

Of course, I was very careful to make sure Logan and Chris didn't know I was thinking this. It wasn't that I didn't feel comfortable with them, I simply didn't want them to know how much the topic of demons loving interested me, especially since they assured me it couldn't happen. Thankfully, none of them noticed the thin shield around this part of my mind.

Chris was now pacing even faster, absentmindedly running his fingers through his hair. I absentmindedly noticed he could do for a haircut soon.

_"Chris, calm down,"_ said Logan, who was chewing on an unlit cigar. The sisters had refused to let him smoke in the house. _"You've been walking there so much, you're gonna wear footprints in the floor if you don't stop."_

Chris shot Logan a look, but gave a mental shrug and went to sit on the counter next to me. Logan was leaning against the opposite wall. Piper, Phoebe and Paige were sitting at the kitchen table. Paige turned to Chris.

"When do you think the demon is going to come back? This waiting is killing me." moaned Paige, who had been tapping her fingers impatiently against the table.

Chris shrugged. "Inumi are smart demons. It'll probably wait until we least expect it and then attack. It's going to wait until it thinks it can succeed."

"Wait. So as long as we're here, and the demon knows we're here, it won't attack?" asked Piper, looking annoyed. She took Chris's silence for confirmation. Sarcasm cut into her words. "Great. Just wonderful. Why can't we just go down to the Underworld and find it?"

"No. It's too dangerous," said Chris, shaking his head. "You don't know if it's summoned other Inumi clans to help, and if it has, you'll want to fight it in the manor, where you're strongest."

"Yeah, because fighting it here sure helped us last time," said Piper, to no one in particular.

"Well, then think of how much worse it could have been," I said, while withholding a small shudder. Things really _could_ have been a lot worse. "Now double that. At least here the Inumi don't have the advantage."

There was a pause in which this fact was accepted. The sisters sighed simultaneously. I nudged Logan with my mind to see if they had noticed. He had. Maybe the sisters had a mental connection too; maybe they just didn't _know_ they had one. That would be interesting.

Phoebe looked at her watch. "Well, I really should be going to work soon." Piper glared at her. "What? I do need to go, I have a deadline."

"The demon-" began Chris, but Phoebe cut him off.

"You said the demon wouldn't attack until it thought it could get away with it. And we need the money," said Phoebe, her voice softer, but no less determined. "I'll leave the Box with Paige. If you really need me, I'm just an orb away."

_"Maybe one of us should go with her."_ I said to Chris. _"Just in case she needs to be orbed back quickly."_

_"She also might need protection; the demon could attack at the newspaper."_ pointed out Logan.

_"It won't attack at the newspaper,"_ said Chris, though he sounded doubtful._ "Demons worry about exposure just as much as we do. I'll go with her. Will you two be okay?" _

_"We'll be fine." _I said, and I felt Logan's mental agreement.

"Fine," said Chris aloud to Phoebe, "But I'm coming with you."

Phoebe rolled her eyes, but shrugged affirmatively. "Faster than driving."

Chris hopped off the counter and took Phoebe's hand. They orbed out. Piper looked from me, to Logan, to Paige. She seemed to be debating something for a moment, and then she stood up.

"You know, I think I'm going to go to the club," she said, and Logan took the cigar out of his mouth. "What?"

"Are you kidding?" said Logan, moving away from the wall and moving closer to Piper. "It's bad enough that Phoebe's gone; do you want to weaken the Power of Three even more? If that thing gets you at the club, where you're alone, you'll die."

"That's awful blunt," said Piper, "But I can blow things up. If the demon attacks, I'll blow it up."

"But Piper, the demon will come back. It won't stay vanquished unless you have to Box," I pointed out. "And it took all of us to fight it off when we didn't have the Box last time."

"Phoebe and I were also unconscious last time." said Piper, crossing her arms.

I quickly showed Chris the conversation. _"Don't let her go,"_ he said, and I felt worry spike in his mind.

"You really think you can beat that demon all by yourself?" said Logan, raising an eyebrow. "You can kill it however many times you want and it'll come back. It only has to kill you once for you to stay dead."

"Piper, it's really not safe. At least stay for a little while." I said. Piper bit her tongue and looked down, as though trying to contain all the things she wanted to say to me and Logan. I doubted those things were kind.

"Fine," she said, and annoyance echoed in her voice. "Fine. But at three o'clock, I'm going to the club to set up the band. Because, demon or no demon, I have a business to run."

And with that said, she stalked out of the room. Paige slowly exhaled a sigh. Logan put his cigar back in his mouth, and sat in Piper's vacant chair. I swung my feet back and forth. Paige stood up.

"I'm going to try and calm her down," she said, smiling nervously. Then she grew serious. "You know, it probably wasn't a good idea to tell her she'd die if she faced the demon alone. We've been doing this for years. We do have our pride."

"Better to have a wounded pride and be alive then to have pride and be dead." said Logan, shrugging. I agreed with him, and said nothing.

Paige gave a small shrug of her own, and left the room, calling for Piper. I hopped off the counter and stood next to Logan. I noticed that Paige had taken the box with her.

_"Chris, did you get that?"_ I asked, and I got his affirmative, before I felt his mind focus on what Phoebe was saying. She was asking him what he would tell someone afraid of umbrella stands. I managed to stop a giggle.

_"So what do we do now?"_ I asked Logan. It was easier speaking mind-to-mind.

Logan got a devilish look in his eye. _"We could always steal from the cookie jar,"_ he suggested, his eyebrow raised.

I smiled, and struggled not to laugh. _"But of course. _How_ could I not have thought of that?"_

He stood up, and we each took a cookie from the jar. I took oatmeal raisin, and Logan chocolate chip. He opened up the fridge when he was done.

_"I wonder if they have any beer?"_ he asked no one in particular, searching for a bottle.

_"Isn't the traditional drink supposed to be milk when cookies are involved?"_ I asked, and Logan looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

_"Who said anything about being traditional?" _he retorted, and I had to agree. Two mutants in a world full of witches and demons. We were anything but traditional.

I strolled over to Piper's spice shelves, just looking at the sheer amount of varied herbs she had. It was then that everything became confused. I felt a swish of wind behind me, and I turned to see the Inumi demon and two other demons, though not other Inumi, come at me. Logan immediately unsheathed his claws and dived at the demons as I attempted to orb away. Nothing happened. Chris's powers must have worn off. I threw off my gloves.

The Inumi flew at Logan - somehow, it's wing had regrown - and grabbed him with both hands. Spinning in midair, it threw Logan through the kitchen wall.

_"Logan!"_ I called in panic, but I got a wave of mingled emotions from him - most of them angry - and knew he was alright._ "Chris!"_ I called, as I jumped through the hole in the wall. I knew I wouldn't be able to fight three demons with only my power. _"Chris, the demon came back with others!"_ I sent him the relevant images as I ran towards Logan. Dimly, I heard Piper and Paige thunder down the steps, and wondered why they didn't orb.

_"I'm on my way,"_ said Chris, and I felt his anxiety as if it were my own.

I saw Logan pushing himself to his feet at the end of the hall - the Inumi had thrown him far - begin running back towards me.

_"Rogue, get his powers when Chris comes,"_ he said, and then his voice changed. _"Rogue, it's right behind you!"_

I felt two arms encircle me, and hold my elbows in a tight grip. I struggled to touch them with my skin, but they wore thin red robes, and I couldn't reach their hands. I yelled in frustration. I was completely powerless.

"Get away from her!" screamed Logan aloud, as I heard mocking laughter behind me. I saw Chris orb in just as the demon holding me flamed out, taking me with it.

_"Rogue!"_ screamed Logan and Chris's voices in my mind.

When we reformed, I was in total darkness.

_"Rogue, I don't know where you are, I don't know where to orb!"_ said Chris, as he struggled not to panic._ "I need an image, send me an image!"_

But then I couldn't send him an image. Before my eyes could readjust to the darkness, I felt a sharp pain on the back of my head. And then I was sliding off into unconsciousness, and I couldn't see anything at all.

Artemis's POV

I raised my eyebrow at the Inumi, who had revealed her name to be Linduva. "Did you really have to hit her that hard?"

Andrew, who was holding the girl, shrugged. "One hit over the head won't kill her. And it's better that she stay still when we transform her. Especially if she could incapacitate us."

"Enough talk," said Linduva, lowering her arm. "Change her now. The sooner she's changed, the sooner she can have her First Kill."

I nodded. Andrew laid the girl down on a bed. We were standing in the court's bed chambers, for when we preferred to sleep as humans. The girl was quite beautiful. I ran my fingers through streaks of white in her hair, but removed them quickly. No sense in being risky. Now, where to bite? The neck was usually bitten when we wanted to _eat_ our prey, but a bite anywhere could change a person. Hollywood had gotten that part wrong. Still, the girl's neck did seem appetizing. I leaned down, bearing my teeth.

"Be careful not to suck her dry," said Andrew, crossing his arms. "We do want her alive."

I narrowed my eyes at him. It would be difficult for _any_ vampire not to suck a human dry. I did not like being cautioned like a baby.

"I'm well aware of that," I said, repressing the desire to roll my eyes, and managing to keep most of the sarcasm out of my voice.

I chose my spot, and bit down. Instantly, sweet blood filled my mouth. It was rich and spicy, and something very _other_. It was nothing like I'd ever tasted before, and I had to immediately quell my instinct to drink more. I started to feel faint, and realized her powers were beginning to drain my energy. I licked the cut on her neck - vampire saliva closed wounds we made with our teeth - and stepped back, blushing slightly. I had almost lost control, and that hadn't happened for two years, when I was a newborn vampire. I licked her remaining blood off my lips, and had to fight the desire to go back to her and drink instead of bite. I was thankful that soon she would be a vampire, and smell the same as everyone else.

Andrew and I removed the thin, red robes we had been wearing; they had been protection against the girl's powers and were no longer necessary. She would soon be a vampire; she was already beginning to change.

Her skin, already pale, was turning paler. The shadows of her face were accented, and her lips were fuller, a result of her enlarged canines. Inside, her magic would be changing. She would retain her original powers, but she would gain vampiric ones as well. Her body was adapting, allowing her to drink blood, and making the need for human food obsolete.

Watching a human change always gave me a sense of satisfaction. They shed their old life completely behind, and become something... more. A force of chaos. Evil was a term used by those who deemed themselves Good. We were not evil; we were chaos. And that was much more fun. We waited for several hours, patiently standing. Only Linduva was impatient, standing and sitting, picking her teeth, inspecting her claws, and shaking her wings.

"How long until the transformation is complete?" asked Linduva, her arms folded across her chest.

"This girl's entire body, entire mind and magic is being changed. It takes time," said Andrew, pausing before answering the question. The Inumi made him nervous, though he hid it under his arrogance. "But the conversion should be complete momentarily."

And sure enough, the girl gasped and she opened her eyes. For a moment, her brown eyes seemed to dilate, but that could have been readjusting to the darkness.

"I can't, I can't-" she whimpered, panicking, and then she turned her head.

She looked uncertainly at me and Andrew, before her eyes shifted to the Inumi. She quickly jumped off the bed and backed away from the Inumi, settling into a fighting crouch and hissing. I saw fear and confusion in her eyes.

I sighed. "No need for that, Linduva doesn't seek your death."

"And stand properly," said Andrew, sizing up our newest sister. "The instinct to hiss is understandable, but we are not so primitive."

The girl looked puzzled. "Linduva?" her eyes flickered from the Inumi to me. "She attacked us before. You kidnapped me!"

"Your witches killed her clan," I explained. "Would you not have sought revenge, if your places were exchanged? And we did not kidnap you. If we had not changed you, Linduva would have killed you. This way, your life was spared."

The girl looked terrified, but resolved in some way. "Change me into what?" she asked, her eyes darting between us. "Who are you?"

"We are vampires, as are you." said Andrew bluntly. "You are one of our coven now, our family. I am Andrew, the other vampire is Artemis."

I cocked my head to the side. "What's your name, sister?"

The girl looked shocked and scared. She hesitated for a second before whispering, "Rogue."

"Well, Rogue," I said, approving the choice of my newest sister's name, "Aren't you thirsty?"

Rogue did not seem to have considered this before. "Yes," she said, surprise clear on her face, as she almost unconsciously eased out of her fighting crouch. "I'm horribly thirsty. Like I haven't drank in years."

"You seek blood." said Andrew. "You need prey. Do you know who you will hunt?"

Rogue seemed indecisive. "I can't kill an Innocent person."

"Then kill a criminal," growled Linduva, impatient. "Aren't there enough of them in your world?"

"I need to go home," said Rogue, her voice growing stronger.

She must have an extraordinarily strong mind to resist the desire for blood and acceptance from Andrew and I. We lived together like a family. A small psychic connection linked us together, and most humans could not resist it's pull.

"You are home," said Andrew. "Leave your other home behind. It should not matter to you now."

Rogue glared at Andrew. We needed to convince her to stay, before she went back to her witches and they killed our Queen. Now that was a thought... Humans were supposed to have compassion. If Rogue refused to kill Innocent humans, how would she feel about killing Andrew or I? We looked human enough.

"Rogue, I understand. Truly, I do, and I want to help. This is all very new to you, and you want to go back to your witches and to your friends. But you must think about this properly. You are a vampire. If you go back to the witches, assuming they don't vanquish you, they will vanquish our Queen in the hope of turning you back."

Rogue gave an involuntary shudder of fear. Every vampire, newly converted or not, had the need to serve and protect our Queen. It was on an instinctive, primal level that none could ignore. The death of our Queen would be something unthinkable.

I continued. "And with the death of our Queen, every vampire would die. Andrew, myself, the coven... and yourself. Would you kill us? Kill yourself? That would surely happen if you returned to the witches."

Rogue would not die if our Queen was killed, not until she made her First Kill. But if I told her that, she might have gone to the witches straight away. She had the power to go, even if she didn't know it yet.

Rogue looked unsure, but responded firmly. "If you want to help me, take me home."

It was very fortunate she didn't know her own power. "I'll take you," I said.

"Artemis -" began Andrew, but I silenced him with a look. In that look, I conveyed that I had a plan, and that he would not intervene unless he wanted to be vanquished. Andrew was arrogant, but he was no fool. He gave me a curt nod to show that he understood and would cooperate.

Enough time had passed from when Rogue had been changed. Hours had passed, and I knew instinctively that it was dark outside. I walked to Rogue, and held out two black gloves. Linduva had told us of her powers.

"Put them on, then we'll go." I told her with a smile. Rogue really was beautiful. When she had donned the gloves, I addressed her again. "Now, unlike demons and warlocks, we do not have modes of instant teleportation. We transform into bats and fly where we want to go. Though, of course, we fly much faster than the average bat."

Rogue said nothing, though her eyes were dilating rapidly. I had never seen that happen before. Maybe it was a side effect of her powers that Linduva had not noticed? I continued, circling her slowly.

"Like any power, this is controlled by emotion. Imagine it, Rogue; the cool night air against your skin, your eyesight dimmed, but instead of eyesight, sound bounces back at you in waves. You smell the parts of the air. The night is your time to fly. Can you see it in your mind? Imagine it. _Become_ it."

And slowly she did. Like sand trickling out of closed hands, she transformed. The speed of Rogue's transformation showed that being a vampire, a hunter, was not a natural thing for her. That was fine. I would teach her. After all, I am master of the Hunt.

I transformed quickly, and led Rogue out of the cave. We flew up, to a surface entrance that could not be opened by any demon other than a vampire. As we broke into the night, and I felt the air on my wings, I glanced back at Rogue. She seemed to be doing well, as far as my echolocation could show me. I purposefully flew forward, flying to the home of the Charmed Ones, though I slowed down whenever Rogue had trouble keeping up. She was my sister, after all.

Soon, the house was in sight, and we flew through an open window into an empty living room. I transformed quickly back into my human form, as did Rogue, though it took her a few moments. I quickly looked her over, making sure the transformation had ended smoothly. Satisfied, I nodded once and smiled.

"Be wary," I told her, "Your witches might not be as understanding as you hope they are. They might attempt to vanquish you or I, at first. If that happens, transform and fly to Andrew. He will protect you if I am vanquished."

Rogue gave me a steely look, though her eyes looked worried, but did not answer. Her eyes dilated very fast, and she suddenly smiled as she quickly left the room. Slightly confused, I followed her. I wished she would be more careful. Even though she was part of Linduva's revenge, I liked her, and hoped that her witches wouldn't attempt to kill her. Or me, for that matter. I rather liked being alive.

And then I felt something, an echo in my mind. As a vampire, I had a psychic connection between all other vampires, even ones not fully converted. I felt something now, another connection, I was sure. And suddenly, everything connected. Rogue had another connection, one outside of our vampire coven! That could be dangerous.

Suddenly, two men - the ones Linduva spoke of - and the Charmed Ones orbed in, the Charmed Ones in front of us, the men behind. All but one of the men, the wilder looking one, were holding potions. I resisted the instinct to bare my fangs and attack, and managed to construct my face into a neutral mask. It would be better if Rogue bit one of the people here. Before we turned the two men into vampires, Rogue had to be fully converted. Otherwise, the revenge would fail.

One of the Charmed Ones, Piper - all demons knew which was which - raised her hand to throw a potion. I prepared to transform, though I knew I would not be able to do it fast enough.

"No!" shouted Rogue, holding out her hand. "Piper don't."

Piper hesitated, but did not lower her arm. Rogue turned to the younger of the two men as though responding to something he had said, which I was sure he had. I felt a tingling in my mind, and knew somehow that Rogue was conversing with both of the men in her mind, though I had no idea what was being said.

"She's been turned into a vampire," said Paige in shock.

"Yeah, and brought one back with her." said Phoebe, "Remind you of anyone, Paige?"

"Oh, yeah," said Paige, running her hands through her hair. I knew what they were referring to; Paige had been turned into a vampire once.

"Please, let me explain," she said, and I felt that she was speaking aloud only for the benefit of the Charmed Ones. "I'm sorry I scared you. But I'm fine. Artemis -"

"Who?!" demanded Piper.

I straightened my back, and answered as haughtily as I could. "_I_ am Artemis, master of the Hunt, envoy, and advisor to the vampire Queen." I inclined my head respectfully, as I would to another demon of an Upper Level.

Rogue continued. I noticed that her eyes had not stopped dilating ever since she had transformed back to human. "She brought me here, she helped me get out of the Underworld. She's not bad."

"Rogue, she's a vampire!" exclaimed Phoebe. "She said she was 'master of the Hunt'. What do you think vampires hunt, chickens? Vampires are Evil."

"Evil, you say?" I questioned, my voice hardening. "Evil? Who among the vampires has hunted entire species to extinction? Who among us has butchered families, clans, lovers? Who among us has hunted those who have done us no wrong? Vampires hunt to live. You, the famed witches, the _Charmed Ones_," I made their name sound mocking. "You hunt to kill. In that respect, you are _far_ more evil than we."

I could feel the rage in the air around me, like a fiery wall. I knew it was only because I was standing so close to Rogue, that I was not vanquished on the spot.

"Rogue," said Piper after a long moment. "We can argue about ways and means later. But right now, I have to know; did you drink blood?"

Rogue shook her head. "No. But it's hard to fight it. I want to drink so badly."

Piper sighed in relief. "Okay, then there might be something we can do. You'll have to keep fighting a little while longer."

Something they could do. They would do the only thing they thought they could; kill my Queen in the attempt to turn Rogue human again. Annihilate every vampire, including myself. I couldn't let that happen. I would have to think of a way to stop them... for the sake of my family.

**A/N: So, Rogue is a vampire and might be saveable, Artemis wants to protect herself and the Queen, and the sisters want to get rid of another threat. But Rogue might object to the deaths of the vampires, especially when she sees just how similar they are to humans. More to come.**


End file.
